MacBook sales in the third quarter have increased by a fifth compared to the same period last year, and Taiwan-based diode makers are seeing "robust demand" for MacBook parts as the trend for remote working continues to grow, according to a new report by DigiTimes.
Recent sales of its MacBook devices, including MacBook Pro and MacBook Air lineups, have increased over 20% from a year earlier, with shipments of related products to Japan and Asia Pacific hitting record highs, said the sources, citing data from Apple.
The report largely mirrors Apple's earnings results for the third fiscal quarter of 2020, in which Mac sales saw a surge in growth as people transitioned from working in offices to working from home. Mac sales saw double digit growth during the quarter, bringing in $7 billion, up from $5.8 billion in the year-ago quarter. Apple released an updated MacBook Air in March and an updated 13-inch MacBook Pro in May.
The report also notes that the growth rate will allow Taiwan's diode makers to maintain their shipment momentum in the third quarter of 2020, which should see them through until production of Apple's next-generation iPhones gets into full swing.
Notably, the same sources noted that diode makers have yet to ramp up related shipments for the next-generation iPhone devices "which are expected to be released soon," and are still shipping diode products for older-generation iPhones.
That fits in with Apple's own admission in its July earnings call that the 2020 iPhone 12 models are going to be released later than usual. Apple CFO Luca Maestri said that the 2020 iPhones will be available a "few weeks later" then the 2019 iPhones, which became available in late September. That statement suggests that we can expect the iPhone 12 lineup to be released in October 2020, perhaps towards the middle of the month.
We're expecting four OLED iPhones in three display sizes which could come in at 5.4, 6.7, and 6.1 inches (x2). Rumors suggest the 6.7-inch iPhone and one 6.1-inch model will be higher-end devices with triple-lens cameras, while the 5.4 and 6.1-inch models will be lower-end iPhones with dual-lens cameras and a more affordable price tag.
