Supply chain sources have revealed that volume production of Apple’s new budget-style MacBook Air will be postponed from Q2, 2018 until the second half of the year.
They added that they were going to suffer losses from low capacity utilisation and high material stock levels because of this delay.
They also claim that Apple has officially informed its partners in the supply chain that large-scale production of the new MacBook Air will not commence before the second half of 2018 – but it offered no reason for his unplanned decision.
Certain partners said they could only guess that the delay was the result of issues Apple was experiencing with certain core components, including processors.
The new MacBook Air will feature a trim design and it will boast Intel’s newest notebook processor and Retina high-res screen.
Apple is expected to reduce the price of the new model from the currently projected $999 to around $899 or even $799. According to some market analysts, this could drive up sales for the new device by more than 10% this year and enable it to recapture part of Chromebooks’ market share.
They added that, with new iPhones also scheduled for large-scale production during Q3, 2018 downstream EMS manufacturers in China might end up competing fiercely for available workers during this period in order to produce large numbers of MacBook Air and iPhone devices.
The sources stated that many of Apple’s Chinese supply chain partners, who have prepared high materials stock levels in preparation for the expected production in the second quarter, will now be left with low capacity utilisation because shipment will only start during the third quarter.
Certain industry analysts claim that Apple has delayed volume production of at least three product lines, including MacBook Air, HomePod, and iPhone, to give it time to adjust its marketing strategy – which clearly failed to respond properly to changing market conditions.
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