Tim Cook is said to be particularly worried about the release of the iPhone 17. The shortage of an essential element Its assembly is currently preventing Apple from building up a sufficient inventory before the devices are officially released, according to sources close to the matter.
Will Apple be able to launch its next iPhone 17 in September, as it does every year? The question arises, as we learn from sources close to the assembly lines in China (via Phonearena) that the production of the new smartphone would be severely disrupted by the shortage of a supply essential to its manufacture.
The problem seems serious enough to make Tim Cook, the boss of Apple, “worried to death”. Enough to force him to call his partner for the assembly of the device every day to inquire about the situation. The supply in question, a kind of fiberglass fabric with a low coefficient of thermal expansion – called low-CTE Fiberglass – is indeed essential for assembling the next iPhones.
The assembly of the iPhone 17 suspended due to the shortage of an essential supply
These dissipate heat, which varies several times during the construction stages of recent smartphones. The element reduces stress on the device's components, allowing for optimal performance and finishing. The reason for the stock shortages of this highly technical glass fiber is not known. But other manufacturers are also said to be impacted by the same supply difficulties.
The release of the iPhone 17 is particularly important for Apple. According to information that has already surfaced, the firm's next devices should adopt a completely new design. With a strip wide enough at the back to house the photo sensors – but also an Air variant with particularly thin casing.
Beyond the inventory, these manufacturing difficulties create a new problem for Tim Cook to solve. Even if Apple has just been exempted from the exorbitant 145% customs duties on all products imported from China to the United States, the effect of Chinese retaliatory measures complicates the firm's plans.
Apple has indeed been forced to quickly overhaul part of its global supply chain – even before the current tenant of the White House decides to exempt it from its “tariffs”. Decisions that have probably already generated significant costs for the company.
But which also reduce the time available to launch a new generation of smartphones every year. Barring a miracle, the firm could likely be forced to move the iPhone 17 release window by at least a few weeks.
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