Industry News

Light Emitting Diode (LED)-backlit Liquid Crystal Display-Televisions (LCD-TVs) will gain considerable momentum in 2010 and beyond because of the increasing commitments from various parts of the TV supply chain, consumer demand and a higher focus on green technologies, according to iSuppli Corp.

iSuppli forecasts that global shipments LED-backlit LCD-TV 40-inches and larger in size will expand to 112.1 million units by 2013, rising at a whopping Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 405 percent from a mere 34,000 units in 2008. In 2010 alone, shipments of LED-backlit LCD TVs 40-inches in size and larger will rise by a factor of nearly eight, reaching 18.8 million units, up from 2.5 million in 2009.

By 2013, 83.2 percent of 40-inch and larger LCD TVs shipped will use LED backlights, up from just 0.1 percent in 2008 and 6 percent in 2009.

For further information please visit:  www.isuppli.com/news.aspx

Taiwan-based notebook brands are expected to see further shipment growth in 2010 with a chance to advance their rankings, according to sources from notebook players.
Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Acer are both estimated to ship more than 40 million notebooks in 2010 with Acer having a chance to surpass HP and become the largest vendor worldwide, the sources noted. HP is estimated to ship 44 million notebooks in 2010. Dell will ship close to 25 million notebooks in 2010, ranking the third largest globally, benefiting mainly from a recovery of the business notebook market.
Asustek Computer, Lenovo and Toshiba are expected to compete fiercely in the fourth-sixth rank interval. Asustek is expected to ship 20 million notebooks in 2010 with 14 million mainstream models and six million netbooks. Toshiba is expected to ship close to 19 million units, while Lenovo about 18 million units, the sources noted. Asustek shipped about 12 million notebooks (including netbooks) in 2009, to rank the sixth largest vendor worldwide. Samsung Electronics, Apple and Sony will remain the seventh-ninth largest brands.
Taiwan-based Micro-Star International (MSI) is expected to advance to the tenth largest global brand in 2010, surpassing Japan-based Fujitsu, the sources noted. MSI shipped more than three million notebooks in 2009.

For more information see: http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20100104PD201.html

Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) on December 29 announced a 3-year program. Inexpensive Good Quality, with a total budget of NT$6.465 billion (US$200 million) to help Taiwan-based brand vendors such as Acer, Asustek Computer and D-Link promote their products in China, India and emerging markets in Southeast Asia, with middle-class people to be target customers.

These emerging markets offer many business opportunities for Taiwan-based brands after the global financial tsunami, for their inexpensive products with comparatively good quality are able to cater to middle-class consumers there, MOEA said.

Read more: www.digitimes.com/news/a20091230PD201.html 

Following a two-year study on the effect of impurity limits on the performance of lead-free solder, the IPC Solder Products Value Council (SPVC) has announced the publication of a white paper, "Take Action Limits (TAL) for SAC305 Lead-Free Soldering Processes Utilizing Solder Baths/Pots." The paper provides electronics manufacturers with better-defined limits to guide them on a more efficient use of solder and, as a result, improve yields.
Take action limits, also known as "dump pot specifications" are important to any electronics manufacturing company using flow soldering techniques either in selective soldering or wave soldering. The report is based on testing of eight common SAC alloys that were subjected to strenuous tests, including wetting and electron microscope examination.

Read more : http://www.ipc.org/ContentPage.aspx?pageid=IPC-Solder-Products-Value-Council-Issues-Report-on-Take-Action-Limits-for-SAC-Lead-Free-Solder-Processes

ECHA's Member State Committee identified today 15 new chemical substances for the Candidate List of substances of very high concern. The List will formally be updated in January 2010.

The Member State Committee agreed unanimously that 15 new substances of very high concern (SVHC) should be put on the Candidate List. Six of these substances were identified in a written procedure and eight at a Committee meeting in Helsinki 2-4 December. One substance, lead chromate, will be included in the Candidate List without involvement of the Member State Committee, because ECHA received no comments on its hazardous properties in the preceding public consultation.

ECHA will include the 15 substances in the Candidate List in January 2010. The substances are listed below. Decisions on the need to subject these substances to authorisation will be taken later.

For more information see http://echa.europa.eu/consultations/authorisation/svhc_en.asp