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NEWS & VIEWS |
Taipei,
Saturday, August 30, 2008
07:46 (GMT+8)
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Subject: Systems > Storage, peripherals |
KYE eyes 40% sequential revenues growth in 2H08 Aug 29, 17:06 KYE Systems, a Taiwan-based maker of mice, keyboards and other PC peripherals, expects its consolidated revenues in the second half of this year to grow over 40% from the NT$5.83 billion (US$184.5 million) recorded in the first half, according to the company. Read more |
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Hollywood movie studios not supporting China-developed CBHD, say Taiwan optical disc makers Aug 29, 01:10 While many leading optical disc makers and vendors of optical disc players in China have been actively promoting the CBHD (China Blue High-definition Disc) format, the prospects for CBHD are not optimistic because vendors are finding it difficult to win support from the main movie studios in Hollywood, according to Taiwan-based optical disc makers. Read more |
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AcBel Polytech sees net profits quadruple in 2Q08 Aug 28, 13:50 Power supply maker AcBel Polytech has reported that its after-tax profits jumped nearly four-fold on quarter to NT$277 million (US$8.79 million) in the second quarter of this year. Read more |
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Lite-On Technology looks for 10-15% sequential revenue growth in 3Q Aug 28, 11:50 By focusing on a number of key components such as power supply products, LEDs, and image products, Lite-On Technology expects its revenues, excluding monitor business, to grow 10-15% sequentially in the third quarter of this year, according to company CEO KC Terng. Read more |
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SanDisk boosts SD card speed by 50% Aug 28, 10:49 SanDisk set a new speed record of 30MB per second for SecureDigital (SD) flash memory cards with the introduction of the SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s Edition line of SD high capacity (SDHC) cards. The new cards, expected to be available worldwide in September in 4GB, 8GB and 16GB capacities, are designed to deliver peak performance when used with the new digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera, Nikon D90. Read more |
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Lite-On IT sees 2Q net profit up 49% on quarter Aug 28, 10:35 Lite-On IT, the largest Taiwan-based ODM/OEM maker of optical disc drives, recorded net profits of NT$519.3 million during the second quarter of 2008, growing by 48.9% on quarter and by 13.3% on year, according to the company's first-half 2008 consolidated financial report released on August 27. Read more |
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Samsung introduces low-density SATA II SSDs for low-cost PC market Aug 28, 01:15 Samsung Electronics has announced that it has begun sampling low-density, higher-performance solid state drives (SSDs) that are only 30% of the size of 2.5-inch SSDs and highly cost-efficient to manufacture. With the introduction of these smaller, low-capacity SSDs, Samsung now offers an attractive replacement for existing hard drives used in low-cost PCs. Available in densities of 8GB, 16GB and 32GB, the new multi-level-cell SSDs will be mass produced beginning next month. Read more |
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China market: Aigo, Fuzhou Rockchip cooperate to promote CMMB mobile DTV standard Aug 27, 13:04 Aigo, a leading own-brand vendor of MP3 players and MP4 players in China, and Fuzhou Rockchip Electronics, a China-based developer/producer of multimedia chipsets used in consumer electronics, have formed a strategic alliance to specifically promote CMMB (China Mobile Multimedia Broadcasting), one of China's self-developed mobile TV standards, according to MP3 player industry sources in Taiwan. Read more |
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Silitech guides for double-digit sequential revenue growth in 3Q Aug 27, 13:01 Handset keypad maker Silitech Technology expects its revenues to expand by a double-digit rate sequentially in the third quarter of this year due to increasing shipments of keypads for new models launched by branded handset vendors, according to company president CY Wu. Read more |
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Inventec Appliances net profits down 10% on year in 1H08 Aug 27, 13:00 Inventec Appliances has announced that its net profits declined 10.2% on year to NT$1.42 billion (US$44.94 million) on consolidated revenues of NT$39.06 billion in the first half of 2008. Read more |
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Connector maker Sinbon suffers over 76% on-year drop in profits in 1H08 Aug 26, 15:43 Taiwan-based connector maker Sinbon Electronics saw its after-tax profits drop 76.8% on year to NT$65.5 million (US$2.08 million) in the first half of this year, according to the company. The profits translate into a net EPS (earnings per share) of NT$0.36. Read more |
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Cooling module makers to be impacted by Dell purchasing strategy, says paper Newswatch | Aug 26, 12:42 Dell is planning to execute parts of its Light Touch strategy by releasing its notebook cooling module purchasing rights to notebook ODMs in the first quarter of 2009, according to a Chinese-language Economic Daily News (EDN) report citing sources at cooling module makers. Read more |
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Toshiba declines to sell HD DVD patents to Taiwan makers, says newspaper Newswatch | Aug 26, 10:57 Leading Taiwan-based makers of optical discs have made an attempt to acquire HD DVD patents from Toshiba after Toshiba gave up promotion of the self-developed blue-laser standard in February 2008, but Toshiba has declined to sell, according to the Chinese-language newspaper Economic Daily News (EDN). Read more |
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Taiwan market: Forworld Electronics launches BD-ROM drive Aug 26, 10:53 Forworld Electronics, a Taiwan-based maker of optical disc players, recently launched a Blu-ray Disc-ROM (BD-ROM) drive model for sale under the brand Pony in the Taiwan market at a retail price of slightly below NT$3,700 (US$118), according to sources in the local retail channel. Read more |
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NAND flash makers extend their presence to USB memory drives Aug 26, 01:10 Sluggish NAND flash demand and demand from OEM customers has prompted chipmakers to extend their presences beyond chip production. Among major NAND flash makers, Intel, Micron Technology and Samsung Electronics are said to be tapping both the memory card and USB drive markets, according to industry sources. Read more |
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CMC Magnetics still seeing demand exceed supply Aug 26, 01:00 CMC Magnetics, the largest Taiwan-based OEM maker of blank optical discs, has received orders with the total volume exceeding its production capacity by 8%, despite the company increasing its OEM quotes by 10% on average earlier in August, according to company chairman Robert Wong. Read more |
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Taiwan market: WD launches new 3.5-inch hard drive VelociRaptor Aug 25, 12:15 Western Digital (WD) on August 22 unveiled two new models of its VelociRaptor hard drive series, the WD3000HLFS (with a storage capacity of 300GB) and the WD1500HLFS (150GB), for immediate launch in the Taiwan market at recommended retail prices of NT$9,999 (US$319) and NT$6,999 respectively, according to WD Taiwan. Read more |
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Taiwan digital camera makers Altek and Ability Enterprise see drop in gross margins Aug 25, 11:29 Altek and Ability Enterprise, two of the top four Taiwan-based ODM/OEM makers of digital cameras, on August 22 released their financial reports for the first half of 2008, with Altek reporting its gross margin rate of 12.70% dropped 4.21 percentage points on year, while Ability's 8.88% gross margins were down 4.03 percentage points on year. Read more |
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China market: Large price drops of white-box CMMB handsets threatening sales of MP4 players Aug 25, 10:53 In the China market, vendors of white-box handsets equipped with China's self-developed mobile TV functionality, CMMB (China Mobile Multimedia Broadcasting), have lowered their retail prices from 1,400-1,500 yuan (US$204-219) to below 1,000 yuan, and this is expected to bring strong competitive pressure on vendors/makers of MP4 players that sell their devices for 700-1,000 yuan, but without CMMB functionality, according to sources in Taiwan's MP3 player industry in Taiwan. Read more |
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SSD in new Eee PC to support SATA interface Aug 22, 16:10 Asustek Computer is said to be bringing a true solid-state disk (SSD) drive to its Eee PC lineup as the company will use an SSD that supports a serial ATA interface and SLC NAND, according to industry sources. JMicron Technology and Samsung Electronics have been identified as the respective controller IC and single-level cell (SLC) NAND chip suppliers, the sources noted. Read more |
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Notebook connector maker Alltop predicts 30% sequential revenues growth in 3Q08 Aug 22, 14:34 Notebook connector maker Alltop Technology expects its revenues to grow 30% sequentially in the third quarter of this year amid increasing shipments in the traditional peak season, according to company sources. Read more |
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Intel CTO says gap between humans and machines will close by 2050 Aug 22, 10:35 Justin Rattner, Intel's chief technology officer during his keynote today at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco, predicted big changes are ahead in social interactions, robotics and improvements in computer's ability to sense the real world. He said Intel's research labs are already looking at human-machine interfaces and examining future implications to computing with some promising changes coming much sooner than expected. Read more |
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Taiwan market: Buffalo unveils 3.5-inch external hard drive series Aug 21, 15:30 Japan-based Buffalo, on August 20, debuted the HD-CEU2, its series of 3.5-inch external hard disk drives, which will launch in the Taiwan market in late August 2008, according to its Taiwan subsidiary Buffalo Technology (Taiwan). Read more |
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Taiwan market: Forworld Electronics offers cheap Blu-ray player Newswatch | Aug 21, 15:28 Forworld Electronics, a Taiwan-based maker of optical disc players, is selling a self-produced Blu-ray Disc (BD) player under its own brand Pony in the Taiwan market at NT$9,990 (US$319), much lower than prices for BD players offered by Sony, Panasonic, Pioneer and Samsung, according to the Chinese-language newspaper Economic Daily News (EDN). Read more |
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Zinwell to ship less than two million ATSC-compatible STBs to US in 2008, says paper Newswatch | Aug 21, 12:14 Zinwell Communications' shipments of ATSC (Advanced Television Systems Committee)-compatible set-top boxes (STBs) for the coupon-eligible converter box (CECB) market in the US will total less than two million units in 2008, the Chinese-language Commercial Times quoted company sources as saying. Read more |
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Battery cell shortage still looming Aug 21, 01:05 Despite that some industry players expect battery cell supply will reach an equilibrium in the fourth quarter, sources at Taiwan notebook battery module makers have noted that it is still too early to tell whether supply will be enough to feed demand. They generally believe shortages will only be solved when fresh capacity becomes available from 2009. Read more |
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Taiwan market: External slim DVD burners selling due to fast growing sales of low-cost notebooks Aug 20, 12:37 External slim-type DVD burners offered by Sony, Pioneer, LG, Asustek, BenQ and other international brands have been selling in the Taiwan market since the second quarter of 2008 due to hot sales of low-cost notebooks, especially Asustek Computer's Eee PC, according to sources in the retail channel. Read more |
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Taiwan optical lens maker Largan Precision earned more than capital in 1H08 Aug 20, 11:13 Largan Precision, a Taiwan-based maker of optical lens kits, generated net profits of NT$1.306 billion for the first half of 2008, more than its current paid-in capital of NT$1.257 billion, according to the company. Read more |
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Netronix ramping electronic book shipments Aug 20, 11:10 Network-equipment and POS (point-of-sale) system provider Netronix has boosted shipments of its electronic books to 2,000-3,000 units a month since the third quarter of this year, compared to 1,000-2,000 units per month in the first half, according to company sources. Read more |
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Delta sees improving gross margin in 3Q08 and beyond Aug 19, 16:07 Delta Electronics expects its gross margin to improve on-quarter starting the third quarter of this year after seeing its gross market decline five percentage points to a low of 17% in the second quarter from a year earlier, according to company CEO Yancey Hai. Read more |
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China market: Sony cuts retail price for 10-megapixel digital camera T300, expected to cut prices in Taiwan too Aug 19, 14:55 Sony has recently lowered the retail price for its Cyber-shot DSC-T300 10.1-megapixel digital camera in the China market by about 15% to 2,200 yuan (US$321), and may do so in the Taiwan market, according to retail channels in Taiwan. Read more |
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Chicony to maintain annual capacity of 20 million notebook camera modules until 2010 Aug 19, 11:52 Chicony Electronics, the largest Taiwan-based maker of USB 2.0 camera modules for being built in notebook PCs, will maintain its annual production capacity of such product at a minimum level of 20 million units from 2008 to 2010, according to industry sources in Taiwan. Read more |
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Taiwan DVD disc maker Optodisc receives court approval Aug 19, 11:38 Optodisc Technology, a Taiwan-based maker of blank DVD+R/-R, DVD+RW/-RW and DVD-RAM discs, on August 18 announced that its request for corporate restructuring to improve its business operation has been approved by the jurisdictional local court in Taiwan. Read more |
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Taiwan court orders Princo to pay Philips for CD-R licensing Aug 18, 15:53 A local court in Taiwan, on August 15, announced its judgment that Princo, a Taiwan-based maker of blank optical discs, must pay Royal Philips Electronics a total of 2.354 billion yen (US$21.1 million) for CD-R licensing. The fees are due for the period from the fourth quarter of 1997 to the fourth quarter of 1999 plus interest for delayed payment, according to Princo's filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE) on August 18. Princo has decided to appeal, the company stressed. Read more |
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Asia Optical see operations turn to profit in 2Q08 Aug 15, 15:27 Digital camera and optical lens kit maker Asia Optical, at an August 14 investors conference, reported consolidated financial figures for the second quarter of 2008, with operations turning from a pre-tax loss of NT$24.5 million (US$781,000) in the first quarter of 2008 to a pre-tax profit of NT$316.8 million. Read more |
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China market: Samsung cuts retail price for 22x DVD burner to 220 yuan Aug 15, 10:42 Samsung Electronics launched the TS-H653F, 22x DVD burner, in the China market in May 2008 at an initial retail price of 289 yuan (US$41), and has successively lowered the price to 269 yuan in July, 239 yuan in early August and 220 yuan currently, according to industry sources in Taiwan. Read more |
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Pioneer may outsource ODD production to Taiwan-based makers Aug 15, 01:15 Since the contract between Pioneer and Asustek Computer for ODM/OEM optical disc drive (ODD) production expired in July 2008, Pioneer is very likely to select one or more new ODM/OEM partners to make less profitable models, and the priority may be given to Taiwan-based makers, especially Lite-On IT and Quanta Storage, according to industry sources in Taiwan. Read more |
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Mitsubishi Chemical to produce high-power laser diodes used in Blu-ray pick-up heads Aug 14, 14:27 Japan-based Mitsubishi Chemical, in view of global short supply of Blu-ray Disc (BD) pick-up heads (PUHs), is planning to step into production of high-power (200-300mW) laser diodes (LDs), the key component of PUHs for BD burners, according to sources in the Taiwan optical disc drive (ODD) industry. Read more |
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Thailand-based Cal-Comp sees net earnings decline in 1H08 Aug 14, 14:17 Thailand-based EMS company Cal-Comp Electronics saw its after-tax profits decline 7% on year to 1.24 billion baht (US$36.77 million) in the first half of 2008, according to the company. The net earnings represent an EPS (earnings per share) of 0.31 baht per share for the first half. Read more |
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Lite-On sees improving profitability in 2H08 Aug 13, 13:46 Lite-On Technology expects its gross margin to improve significantly in the second half of this year following completion of the sale of its monitor business to Wistron at the end of this month, a company official said at a recent investors conference. Read more |
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Taiwan-based Forworld Electronics and DataFab to supply Haier with components for BD players, says newspaper Newswatch | Aug 13, 10:21 Forworld Electronics, a Taiwan-based maker of optical disc players, and DataFab Systems, a Taiwan-based producer of external flash memory cards, have partnered with Haier, a large maker of own-brand home electric appliances and consumer electronics in China, for production of Blu-ray Disc (BD) players, according to the Chinese-language newspaper Economic Daily News (EDN). Read more |
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PC vendors asking for reductions in ODM/OEM quotes for Blu-ray drives Aug 13, 01:15 PC vendors including Hewlett-Packard (HP), Dell, Acer and Asustek Computer want a considerably large reduction in ODM/OEM prices of Blu-ray Disc (BD) Combo and BD-ROM drives, but leading ODM/OEM makers are unwilling to lower current quotes, according to industry sources in Taiwan. Read more |
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Optical disc makers see capacities booked despite price hikes Aug 12, 01:15 Although CMC Magnetics, the largest Taiwan-based OEM maker of blank optical discs, has raised its OEM quotes for CD-R and DVD+R/-R discs by 10% on average and some fellow makers in Taiwan have followed or will follow suit, a few leading Taiwan-based makers have received so many urgent orders for CD-R and/or DVD+R/-R discs recently as to fully occupy their production capacities, according to industry sources in Taiwan. Read more |
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TPO to expand its 3.5G capacity Aug 12, 01:10 Taiwan low-temperature polysilicon (LTPS) TFT LCD panel maker TPO Displays is going to expand its 3.5G production capacity, with the company estimating the new capacity will come online in the first quarter of 2009. Read more |
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Ritek to produce solar modules Aug 12, 01:05 Taiwan-based optical disc maker Ritek will enter the solar module business by entering into a partnership with Dutch-based Scheuten Solar, according to a Ritek filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE). Ritek will be responsible for the production of the solar modules for Scheuten, which will supervise the quality and supply chain, indicated Frans van den Heuvel, chief operations officer of Scheuten. Read more |
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Delta and Lite-On Technology post strong revenues growth in July Aug 11, 12:03 Delta Electronics and Lite-On Technology have both reported strong sequential revenues growth in July on seasonal factors, according to sources at the companies. Read more |
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Taiwan digital camera makers Altek, Ability Enterprise see July consolidated revenues up on year Aug 11, 11:39 Altek and Ability Enterprise, two of the top three Taiwan-based ODM/OEM makers of digital cameras, on August 8 reported self-estimated consolidated revenues for July 2008, recording a year-on-year increase of 19.11% and 9.95%, respectively. Read more |
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Foxconn sees revenues grow nearly 35% on year in July Aug 11, 11:16 Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai Precision Industry) saw its revenues grow 34.9% on year to NT$130.27 billion (US$4.16 billion) in July, according to a company filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE). The July figures also represent an increase of 21.2% from the previous month. Read more |
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Lite-On IT and Quanta Storage see July consolidated revenues up Aug 11, 10:52 Lite-On IT and Quanta Storage, the largest Taiwan-based ODM/OEM makers of half-height and slim-type optical disc drives respectively, on August 8 reported their consolidated revenues for July 2008, with both figures increasing on month and on year. Read more |
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Prodisc Technology granted 90-day shelter from creditors Aug 8, 17:00 Taiwan-based optical disc maker Prodisc Technology has announced that its request to the local courts for emergency protection from creditors while it undergoes corporate restructuring was approved at an August 6 hearing. The emergency measures came into effect on August 7 and will last for 90 days. Read more |
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Foxlink expects connector shipment momentum to continue this month Aug 8, 15:20 Foxlink (Chen Uei Precision Industry) has reported strong revenues growth in July amid rising shipments of connectors for handsets and games consoles. The company expects momentum to continue in August, according to company sources. Read more |
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CMC and Ritek see July revenue rise Aug 8, 11:54 CMC Magnetics and Ritek, the top two Taiwan-based maker of blank optical discs, both reported a sequential revenue increase for July, with Ritek's revenues hitting its highest monthly level so far in 2008. Read more |
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Synnex Technology sees growth in July consolidated revenue Aug 8, 09:47 Synnex Technology International, the largest 3C (computer, communication, consumer electronics) channel distributor in Taiwan, on August 7 reported self-estimated consolidated revenue of NT$16.72 billion (US$549 million) for July 2008, a rise of 7.8% on month and 23.0% on year. Read more |
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Toshiba launches 32GB embedded NAND flash Aug 8, 09:38 Toshiba announced the launch of 32GB embedded NAND flash memory modules that the company claims are the largest density yet announced, with the modules also having full compliance with the e-MMC and eSD standards. Samples will be available in September 2008, and mass production will start in the fourth quarter. Read more |
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USI sees effect from economic slump in July revenues Aug 8, 01:15 Affected by the falling worldwide economy, Universal Scientific Industrial (USI) recorded consolidated revenues of NT$5.02 billion (US$162.16 million) for July, a drop of 11% compared to June, and only a slight increase of 2% compared to the same month last year. Accumulated consolidated revenues for the first seven months in 2008 were NT$39.92 billion, an increase of 16% on year. Although the third quarter is the traditional peak season for the PC market, since the overall economy is slowing down, the company is conservative about revenues performance in August and September. Read more |
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