TFT-makers expect grow to 90%
Taiwan's top TFT panelmakers expect large-size panel shipments to grow in 2004 as they ramp up capacity. AU Optronics expects its second fifth-generation (5G) TFT LCD production line (monthly capacity to process 70,000 substrates) to begin volume production in the first quarter, earlier than the originally planned. Chi Mei Optoelectronics (CMO) expects to reach their 120,000-substrate maximum capacity by year-end. It will begin equipment installation at its 5.5G line in the third quarter, the company said. It will sign a NT$41 billion loan with a bank consortium to help fund its line. Chunghwa Picture Tubes (CPT) expects to expand the capacity of its 3G, 4G and 4.5G lines, processing 36,000, 66,000, and 75,000 substrates per month, respectively, by 15% by the third or fourth quarter. The company plans to ship about two million notebook TFT LCD panels, 3.5 million 15 and 17-inch LCD monitor panels, 500,000 LCD TV panels and 500,000 small to medium-size TFT LCD panels in 2004, with monthly shipments to reach 850,000 and one million units in the first and second quarters, respectively. HannStar Display, with a maximum monthly capacity to process 120,000 substrates, begins volume production this quarter and will dedicate half of its capacity to LCD-TV panels. Quanta Display expects to expand its monthly capacity to 60,000 substrates, up from 30,000 currently.
Notebook-makers: modular models for display flexibility
Some Taiwanese notebook makers are developing modularized designs that make a single model compatible with different display sizes. The move is precaution against possible supply problems for particular TFT LCD panel sizes. Although a global shortage of LCD panels is unlikely to occur in 2004 as all of the world's leading flat-panel makers are ramping production at their fifth-generation (5G) and 6G lines, the supply of some sizes might fall short due to changing consumer demand and rapid development of LCD-TV's.
Asustek's recent launch of its M6000N notebook is a response to this production trend. The M6000N notebook, which is based on Intel's Pentium M processor, offers vendors the option to choose display panels ranging from 14.1-inch XGA to 15.1-inch XGA/SXGA+ and 15.4-inch WXGA/WSXGA+. Some makers predict that the 15.4-inch panels may ship with 20-25% of the world's notebooks in 2004 as demand for wide-screen models increases. Others estimate that the consumer market has a higher growth potential than the business sector, and so 15.1-inch consumer-use models will come out ahead of 14.1-inch ones for business-use. This is why Dell has decided to adopt 15.1-inch panels for its main business-use notebooks in 2004.
DRAM module supply tightens on component shortage
DRAM module supply has tightened early January due to a shortage of components such as PCB's, passive components and certain types of DRAM chips. Module makers currently fulfill only 50-70% of their orders, sources said. The strong demand for modules mainly comes from the PC distributors and wholesalers in China, which is aggressively stocking inventory for Chinese New Year sales this week. Component suppliers have insufficient inventory to meet module makers' growing demand. They have traditionally kept low inventory in the first quarter for seasonal reasons. Supply of 256Mbit DDR 333MHz chips is tightening in the spot market as some PC makers have aggressively sought the chips.
AOpen to sell 500,000 mini-PC's
AOpen, a Taiwanese producer of optical drives and motherboards, expects to deliver 500,000 mini-PCs this year, 20 times the units sold in 2003. AOpen extended its production to notebook computers early 2003 and then mini-PC's in October. According to the company, mini-PC's are mainly sold in the clone market, with global demand estimated at one to 1.2 million units this year. Apart from NEC ordering mini-PCs from Shuttle, no international PC brand have entered this field. AOpen plans to compete with Shuttle to be the top mini-PC maker. AOpen expects notebooks and mini-PCs to become the main source for its revenue growth this year. Due to the negative impact of SARS and short supply of hard disks, the company's shipments of 150,000 notebooks in 2003 met only 50% of its target. Through marketing efforts in Europe and China last year, AOpen stands a chance of exporting 250,000 notebooks to those markets in 2004, the company said.
MSI launches its first (barebone) notebook
Motherboard maker Micro-Star International (MSI) has launched its first WiFi notebook, the M3000, at CES in Las Vegas, based on Intel's Centrino platform. It features a 15-inch screen, ATI Technologies Mobility Radeon 9600 graphics chip and support for IEEE 1394, USB 2.0 and WiFi connectivity. The model may also be made with a modularized chassis, to allow shipments of barebones that can be configured close to the end-users, company sources said.
The company has started manufacturing the M3000 in small volumes for the retailmarket in China, sources said. MSI plans more than 10 notebook models in 2004, including 12-inch slim types in the second quarter. At CES, the company also showcased its new multimedia barebone system, the MSI Mega 865. 'Mega' stands for 'MSI entertainment gaming appliance'. The 865, which features a P4, combines the functions of a Hi-Fi stereo, DVD/VCD player, MP3 player, TV and PC.
Philips wants 20% share in LCD TV
Philips plans to ship six to seven million LCD monitors and two million LCD-TV's in 2004, grabbing a 20% share of the global LCD-TV market, according to Cor Saris, CEO of Philips Multimedia Displays. The company expects global monitor demand to grow 40% to 70 million units in 2004. It expects its own LCD monitor shipments to grow 50-75% from the four million units in 2003, Saris added. It expects global LCD-TV demand to surge by 167-233% to reach 8 to 10 million units, up from 3 million last year. Philips plans to increase its own-brand sales (versus contract-manufacturing) to 60% this year, up from the 50% in 2003.
Asustek passes Wistron to become 3rd largest notebook maker
Asustek shipped 1.9 million notebooks in 2003, more than doubling from 900,000 units in 2002 and propelling the company past Wistron to rank as Taiwan's third-largest notebook maker. Wistron, which had ranked as the third largest maker since 2001, retreated to fourth place with total shipments of 1.75 to 1.8 million notebooks. Asustek is expected to ship three million to 3.5 million notebooks, including one million own-brand units, in 2004, company sources estimated. Asustek is the only major notebook maker in Taiwan that produces OEM, clone and own-brand notebooks. Its OEM clients include Sony, Apple Computer, Samsung Electronics and Medion.
Chaintech targets 39% sales growth
Taiwan-based motherboard and graphics card maker Chaintech aims to generate as much as NT$6 billion in revenues this year, up 39% from last year, according to president Simon Ho. He (Ho) said at the company's year-end dinner that Chaintech swung to a profit in Q4 of 2003, compared to a net loss of NT$71.4 million in the first three quarters, and the company is confident of turning a profit this year. Other second-tier Taiwanese motherboard makers are also projecting strong growth. Abit Computer is targeting shipping three million boards, up from about two million. Universal Scientific Industrial internally estimates growth of 25-30%, and Albatron Technology is targeting sales growth of more than 35% to NT$7.5 billion.
Lite-On ships 8x DVD Dual to Sony
Lite-On IT, Taiwan's largest producer of optical drives, will begin to deliver 8x half-height DVD Dual burners to Sony in february, according to the company. Sony, because of uncompetitive costs, stopped own production of DVD drives beginning with 8x models late last year. Sony sold three million 8x DVD burners last year and the sales volume may double to six million units this year, Lite-On IT said. If Lite-On can absorb all of the OEM-orders for 8x DVD burners, the monthly shipments would average 500,000 units. However, Lite-On thinks that Sony is unlikely to rely on only one OEM supplier. Lite-On could also obtain orders for DVD burners from another international brands next quarter, the company said. Including these orders. Analysts expect Lite-On to deliver a record of five million DVD burners this year, a jump of 67% from three million shipped in 2003.