Component shortages ease for Apple, says report
But HTC comes up behind with Chrome tablet and HSPA+ smartphone
Published: 19 August, 2010
READ MORE: Apple | HTC | Handset
Component shortages should become a less serious issue for smartphone vendors in time for the holiday season, according to supply chain checks, as manufacturers ramp up their production of key new elements like advanced displays. Apple will be one of the main beneficiaries, according to a research note from Apple watcher Ashok Kumar of Rodman & Renshaw, but that will not stop HTC from biting at the firm's heels in the run-up to the holidays.
The wait for the iPhone 4 order should be shorter by the end of September, helping Apple to sell about 14m new units in the third quarter and 15m in the last quarter, according to Kumar. His supply chain research also indicates that LG Display is expanding output of the 9.7-inch LCD displays for the iPad, which will ease bottlenecks for that device too, and lead to sales of 5m to 6m units in Q3.
Component shortages are only one challenge for Apple in defending its smartphone high ground from challengers, notably HTC, whose own screen supply problems will also ease in time for Q4. HTC uses a mixture of Super LCD and Samsung AMOLED displays for its high end models. The Taiwanese firm has made a big splash with its Android Desire, Incredible and EVO handsets and is now reported to be working on a tablet. Not just an Android model, as expected, but also one of the first 'cloudbooks' to run Google's new Chrome operating system. This browser-as-OS will debut in October along with initial devices, which will take tablet or netbook form factors and be heavily geared to browser/cloud usage patterns and web apps. HTC could be in the first line of vendors to support Chrome OS, according to the Download Squad blog.
HTC is also providing another landmark device, the first HSPA+ smartphone for the US market. The vendor is making a habit of scoring US firsts - in Android, WiMAX and now T-Mobile's 14Mbps HSPA+ network, which is available in about 50 urban markets now. The new phone is the G2, a successor to the first ever commercial Android handset, the TMo G1. Its heir promises "tight integration with Google services", suggesting it may be more geared to the vanilla Android user experience favoured by TMo on the G1, rather than HTC's own popular overlay, Sense, or TMo's reported plans to create its own branding and experience.
The carrier will release further details of the G2 "in the coming weeks" and promises exclusive first access to current customers, with launch likely next month.
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