Hasta La Gadget!

It’s hard to believe that amid such huge demand for smartphones and tablets, Sharp Corp. is seeing its stock prices declined. The main market categories that Sharp operates in are liquid crystal displays, LCD television sets, and solar panels. All of its main markets are unprofitable at this time. Sharp is expected to post a loss of ¥250 billion for its fiscal year ending in March of next year.

The company also happens to be sitting on ¥1.25 trillion of interest-bearing debt. When things went bad at Sharp, the company reached out to one of its industry partners Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, otherwise known as Foxconn. Foxconn builds many of the most popular devices on the market such as the iPhone and lots more.

Foxconn agreed to purchase 9.9% of Sharp at ¥550 per share working out to roughly $7 per share here in the states. The total purchase of 9.9% would cost Foxconn $800 million at the previously agreed price. Sharp has continued to decline in revenue since the deal was first brokered meaning its stock price has declined as well. That decline in stock price means that Sharp is likely to sell to Foxconn at a lower price than previously agreed.

The Wall Street Journal reports that on Monday, Sharp stock ended the day 6.1% down selling for ¥186 per share. That is significantly less than the ¥550 per share that Foxconn agreed to pay in March of 2012. The decline in stock price means that Sharp won’t raise as much money as expected with the sale.

[via WSJ]

Sharp expected to sell shares to Foxconn for less amid decline in value is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The iPhone 5 could end up in short supply, with word that Sharp has apparently experienced delays in mass producing displays for the much-anticipated iOS smartphone. Sharp had intended to begin large scale production and shipping of the new LCD panels in August, an insider whispered to the WSJ, but unspecified manufacturing problems have supposedly scuppered that timescale.

That apparently leaves just two of Apple’s three intended suppliers actually delivering components, LG Display and Japan Display Inc. Both have already begun shipping to Apple, the source says, though Sharp still does not have an estimated date for when its deliveries might begin.

If true, the delay could be potentially very embarrassing for Sharp and key Apple product manufacturer Foxconn, which recently invested significantly into the display firm. It’s not the first time Sharp has supposedly let Apple down, either. The firm was supposedly bypassed initially for new iPad display supplies after its panels failed to live up to Cupertino’s exacting standards.

Apple has declined to comment on the leaks, but the company is expected to launch the iPhone 5 at an event on September 12. Typically, Apple pushes out its new phones roughly a week or so after the official reveal, and it’s unclear whether Sharp’s problems will change that or create a supply bottleneck in the first weeks of availability.

iPhone 5 Sharp screen delay could bottleneck supply is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

According to a recent report from Reuters, it looks like maybe we should prepare ourselves for a possible iPhone shortage as it has been said that Sharp’s production of the iPhone’s display is behind schedule with low production yields. Of course this won’t affect all the iPhones since Sharp is one of the three suppliers reportedly behind the production, with Japan Display and LG Display supplying displays as well. It was not stated as to how many percent of the initial batch of iPhones Sharp will be responsible for, but it is safe to assume that if this report is to be believed, supply for Apple’s next-gen iPhone could face some constraints and it could lead to shortages faster than anticipated. Of course we expect that Apple’s other suppliers will be picking up the slack but since this report cannot be officially confirmed, we’ll take it with a grain of salt for now. Apple’s new iPhone is expected to be announced on the 12^th of September with a rumored release on the 21^st of September.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Next-gen iPhone to feature in-cell touch panel displays? [Rumor], News Corp iPad Daily News App Coming January with 3D,

There was little doubt jobs would be on the line after Sharp’s significant Q1 losses, but now it’s official. Following a board meeting today, the company has joined the likes of RIM, Sony and HP, announcing the “voluntary retirement” of around 2,000 staff in Japan before the year’s out. The layoffs are part of a wider, textbook reorganization plan, and are expected to cost a sizeable 27 billion yen (approximately $344 million). Neither figure is set in stone, however, so when everything is finalized we could see more jobs impacted and those costs soar. Whether this puts off potential investment from Hon Hai Precision Industry is unknown, but while Sharp’s TVs get ever bigger, its wallet continues to get thinner.

Filed under: Misc

Sharp reports 2,000 job cuts in Japan, more changes expected originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Aug 2012 23:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We here at Engadget tend to spend a lot of way too much time poring over the latest FCC filings, be it on the net or directly on the ol’ Federal Communications Commission’s site. Since we couldn’t possibly (want to) cover all the stuff that goes down there individually, we’ve gathered up an exhaustive listing of every phone and / or tablet getting the stamp of approval over the last week. Enjoy!

Continue reading FCC Fridays: August 17, 2012

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablet PCs

FCC Fridays: August 17, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Aug 2012 18:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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