Apple Reportedly Refuses to Accept TSMC Chip Price Hike
Apple has reportedly refused to accept a price increase from its sole chip supplier, TSMC, according to Economic Daily News.
The report claims that Apple, the largest customer of TSMC, has rejected the supplier's plans to increase chip prices next year. TSMC has been planning to increase its prices by six to nine percent, depending on the fabrication process.
TSMC's chips were already around 20 percent more expensive compared to those from its direct rivals, but smaller foundries have ramped up their own prices in recent years due to higher material and logistics costs, and TSMC has committed to $100 billion in new investment over the next three years, motivating the company to increase its prices to maintain its premium and pass added costs on to clients.
TSMC was also reportedly keen to stop its clients from canceling orders and ordering more chips than needed in the hope of securing production line space and additional support from contract chipmakers, which has made it difficult for the company to understand real demand.
Following negotiations, Apple has apparently refused to accept further price increases. TSMC makes all of Apple's custom silicon chips, but Apple is estimated to make up more than one quarter of TSMC's entire revenue, meaning that the companies are fairly reliant upon each other. An improvement in the semiconductor industry's supply outlook despite inflation is believed to have hardened Apple's refusal to acquiesce to price hikes.
Like many of Apple's suppliers, TSMC has been wrestling with supply chain issues since 2020. Last year, it was speculated that Apple may have to raise device prices to account for substantial chip price rises.
Popular Stories
Barclays analyst Tom O'Malley and his colleagues recently traveled to Asia to meet with various electronics manufacturers and suppliers. In a research note this week, outlining key takeaways from the trip, the analysts said they have "confirmed" that a fourth-generation iPhone SE with an Apple-designed 5G modem is slated to launch towards the end of the first quarter next year. In line with previo...
Apple released the AirTag in April 2021, so it is now three over and a half years old. While the AirTag has not received any hardware updates since then, a new version of the item tracking accessory is rumored to be in development.
Below, we recap rumors about a second-generation AirTag.
Timing
Apple is aiming to release a new AirTag in mid-2025, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman....
AT&T has begun displaying "Turbo" in the iPhone carrier label for customers subscribed to its premium network prioritization service, according to reports on Reddit. The new indicator seems to have started appearing after users updated to iOS 18.1.1, but that could be just coincidence.
Image credit: Reddit user No_Highlight7476
The Turbo feature provides enhanced network performance through ...
Apple today released iOS 18.1.1 and iPadOS 18.1.1, minor updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that debuted earlier in September. iOS 18.1.1 and iPadOS 18.1.1 come three weeks after the launch of iOS 18.1.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. Apple has also released iOS 17.7.2 for...
While the Logitech MX Master 3 is a terrific mouse for the Mac, reports claiming that Apple CEO Tim Cook prefers that mouse over the Magic Mouse are false.
The Wall Street Journal last month published an interview with Cook, in which he said he uses every Apple product every day. Soon after, The Verge's Wes Davis attempted to replicate using every Apple product in a single day. During that...
In a research note with Hong Kong-based investment bank Haitong today, obtained by MacRumors, Apple analyst Jeff Pu said he agrees with a recent rumor claiming that the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" will be around 6mm thick.
"We agreed with the recent chatter of an 6mm thickness ultra-slim design of the iPhone 17 Slim model," he wrote.
If that measurement proves to be accurate, there would be ...
The iOS 18.1.1, iPadOS 18.1.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.1.1 updates that Apple released today address JavaScriptCore and WebKit vulnerabilities that Apple says have been actively exploited on some devices.
With the JavaScriptCore vulnerability, processing maliciously crafted web content could lead to arbitrary code execution. The WebKit vulnerability had the same issue with maliciously crafted...
Apple has partnered with select merchants to offer Apple Card users three percent Daily Cash back on their purchases, and two new companies were added to the partner list today. When purchasing goods and services from Booking.com and ChargePoint, Apple Card users will now get more cash back.
Booking.com is a site for reserving flights, cars, cruises, and hotels, while ChargePoint sells...