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Aug 15, 2007 at 03:19 PM |
If you are a chip supplier to Apple you already know all about it! Whether it's for Apple's iPod or iPhone you will know that the Cupertino, California-based company wields a lot of influence!
According to a new report from iSuppli, Apple's design activity, especially with the launch of the iPhone, created $3.8 billion worth of global semiconductor purchases in the first half of 2007. This is up 27 percent from $3 billion in 2006, iSuppli said.
Considering the phone is still only available in the U.S., that figure is quite impressive. This influence should increase, according to the market research firm, as it reckons Apple will ship more than 4.5 million iPhones globally in 2007, 13.5 million units in 2008 and 21.1 million units in 2009.
With the iPhone not technically brilliant but effectively another design icon in the making, the power of appealing design shouldn't be underestimated.
If Microsoft's Vista OS had been better designed then maybe the take-up would have been stronger and its purchasing influence over DRAM might have prevented last year's oversupply in the DRAM market!
It was also interesting to note that the iPhone is also helping to soak up the NAND flash glut. Maybe we need more new electronic products from Apple, given that its influence goes much further afield than chip manufacturers.
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