Asustek Computer Inc (華碩電腦), the world's largest motherboard maker, is tapping into the market for budget notebook PCs with a slew of products scheduled for launch in the second half of the year.
"Tech giants such as Intel Corp don't want to miss out on the potential of the budget PC segment, and we are working with [Intel] to tap into the market," confirmed an Asustek official, who requested anonymity, in a telephone interview yesterday.
He was responding to a report that came out yesterday in the Chinese-language Commercial Times, which said Asustek would introduce a series of low-priced PCs based on Intel's Classmate PC platform in the second half of the year.
Joining hands with Intel offers Asustek the chance to move into a new segment, while beefing up its economies of scale in computer production, the official said.
Details of these budget laptops, including channels and distribution, still need to be ironed out, but they would not be Asustek's main product line, he added.
According to the Commercial Times report, the five budget laptop models would be priced from US$199 to US$549.
They will employ Intel's Solid State Disk with flash memory from 1 gigabyte to 40 gigabytes, instead of the standard mechanical hard drive, the report said.
The 7-inch panels for the notebook computers will be sourced from AU Optronics Corp (
"Although profit margins for these low-end PCs will not be as good as its other notebook computer series, Asustek will immediately benefit from the scale," Daniel Chang (
Asustek's component costs could also drop as its sourcing expands with the additional volume from these budget laptops, he said.
"Asustek's technology strength will help it penetrate various PC segments ... Its global notebook market share will continue to rise at a fast rate," Chang said.
Asustek will be competing against Quanta Computer Inc (
Quanta is the sole manufacturer of the One Laptop per Child (OLPC), a project initiated by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to distribute computers to children in developing countries.
Using the Linux operating system and low-cost materials, these notebook computers, priced at US$150 a unit, will come onstream later this year.
Quanta has said it aims to deliver more than 10 million OLPCs within the first 12 months.
However, Merrill Lynch cautioned last month that while the OLPC business model might be viable in its initial stage, users would face problems when they need maintenance help, software debugging, updates or help in handling viruses.
Shares of Asustek edged up 1.5 percent to NT$79.8 (US$2.41) on the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday, while shares of Quanta dropped 0.6 percent to NT$50.7.
PATENTS: MediaTek Inc said it would not comment on ongoing legal cases, but does not expect the legal action by Huawei to affect its business operations Smartphone integrated chips designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) on Friday said that a lawsuit filed by Chinese smartphone brand Huawei Technologies Co (華為) over alleged patent infringements would have little impact on its operations. In an announcement posted on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, MediaTek said that it would not comment on an ongoing legal case. However, the company said that Huawei’s legal action would have little impact on its operations. MediaTek’s statement came after China-based PRIP Research said on Thursday that Huawei filed a lawsuit with a Chinese district court claiming that MediaTek infringed on its patents. The infringement mentioned in the lawsuit likely involved
EXPECTATIONS: The firm, which is on track to outpace global foundry industry revenue growth, said it expects constrained advanced process capacity amid stronger AI demand Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday increased its projected revenue growth for this year to above 25 percent, as stronger-than-expected demand for premium smartphones and artificial intelligence (AI) devices are to drive greater utilization of cutting-edge 3-nanometer and 5-nanometer chips. In April TSMC estimated 21 to 24 percent annual growth. The firm’s revenue growth is on track to greatly outpace the global foundry industry, which is expected to rise about 10 percent this year. “Over the past three months, we have observed stronger AI and high-end smartphone demand from our customers, which is to boost the overall capacity utilization for our leading-edge
INVESTMENT: The company’s planned complex in Texas would be the first 12-inch silicon wafer fab built in the US in more than 20 years, a GlobalWafers official said GlobalWafers Co (環球晶圓), the world’s No. 3 silicon wafer supplier, yesterday said it secured up to US$400 million in direct funding from the US Department of Commerce under the CHIPS and Science Act for the construction of two new advanced fabs in the US. Its subsidiaries GlobalWafers America and MEMC LLC are to build a 12-inch silicon wafer fab in Sherman, Texas, and another one in Missouri to produce silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers used to make leading-edge chips. “With the support of the [US President Joe] Biden Administration, we are honored to be bringing to American shores the world’s most cutting-edge 12-inch semiconductor
Nikon Corp is fielding strong demand for its legacy chipmaking machines in China, which is mobilizing resources to build its own semiconductor supply chain. Inquiries for the Japanese precision maker’s lithography tools have surged in China, Nikon president Muneaki Tokunari said. The company is set to revamp a lithography machine geared for decades-old manufacturing processes. Its NSR-2205iL1, launching this summer, would serve the market for mature chip technology and Nikon expects to sell more than 10 units of the machine annually, said Tokunari, who is also chief operating officer and chief financial officer. New companies are sprouting up in China to make