Foxconn Begins Seasonal Hiring Spree Ahead of 2018 iPhones
Apple supplier Foxconn is gearing up to hire more workers for its plants in Zhengzhou, China by offering bonuses to workers who help assemble Apple's 2018 iPhones. According to a new report by the Economic Daily News, the supplier is offering one-off bonuses of up to CNY 2,000 (US $295) to workers who renew their contracts at this time (via DigiTimes), and the hiring campaign is expected to last through November 2018.
Suppliers typically begin their hiring sprees in the summer months in preparation for the annual fall iPhone launches, with Foxconn and Pegatron initiating hiring campaigns as early as May in 2016 and June in 2014.
The report also points back to the "weaker-than-expected" profits that Foxconn received in the fourth quarter of 2017 following the November launch of the iPhone X, believed to be due to the high pre-production costs of the smartphone. In an effort to prevent this from happening again in 2018, the supplier is applying "stricter cost management" to its iPhone production process.
Foxconn is expected to assemble the majority of Apple's three iPhone models coming out later this year, including all of the second-generation iPhone X, 90 percent of the "iPhone X Plus," and 75 percent of the lower-priced 6.1-inch iPhone. This news came in a report by the Taipei Times last month, which claimed that the rest of the 2018 iPhone orders will be fulfilled by Taiwanese manufacturer Pegatron.
News surrounding the ramp-up of iPhone production usually begins around this time of year, with the majority of reports typically hitting in August and focusing on iPhones entering volume production and the supply chain facing shortages. Other Apple suppliers have also been at the center of production ramp-up stories, including TSMC about a month ago when DigiTimes reported that the company has begun commercial production of chips manufactured using its 7-nanometer process, including Apple's A12 processor.
Suppliers are getting ready for what is expected to be a global launch of the 2018 iPhone models this September, following Apple's annual iPhone reveal event. Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes Apple will release all three new iPhones in September with an aggressive pricing strategy: the 6.5-inch OLED iPhone will be priced at $900 to $1,000, the 5.8-inch OLED second-generation iPhone X will be priced at $800 to $900, and the 6.1-inch LCD iPhone will be priced at $600 to $700.
Popular Stories
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup.
If you skipped the iPhone...
A developer has demonstrated Windows 11 ARM running on an M2 iPad Air using emulation, which has become much easier since the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulations came into effect.
As spotted by Windows Latest, NTDev shared an instance of the emulation on social media and posted a video on YouTube (embedded below) demonstrating it in action. The achievement relies on new EU regulatory...
Apple seeded the third beta of iOS 18.5 to developers today, and so far the software update includes only a few minor changes.
The changes are in the Mail and Settings apps.
In the Mail app, you can now easily turn off contact photos directly within the app, by tapping on the circle with three dots in the top-right corner.
In the Settings app, AppleCare+ coverage information is more...
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself.
Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
Apple plans to release an all-new super thin iPhone this year, debuting it alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We've seen pictures of dummy models, cases, and renders with the design, but Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy today showed off newer dummy models that give us a better idea of just how thin the "iPhone 17 Air" will be.
The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be ...
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed.
Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles."
If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
