The worldwide chip shortage has been with us since late 2019. Now, according to a report from market analysts TrendForce, it seems that PC chip supplies are getting better but smartphones or handheld chips are still lagging behind.
On The PC Chip Shortage
According to the analysts, in November 2021 the PC chip shortages have been “partially alleviated”. Because of this, the volume of PC ODM shipments has increased and has shown an upward trajectory in Q4 of 2021.
In addition, the report says that the impact of the under/oversupply on end PCs and laptops is “relatively minor” except for the SSD PCIe 3.0 controller, which is still having shortages that may be due to Intel’s transition to a new platform.
The current delivery cycle for supplies is anywhere between 8 to 12 weeks although the supplies of the Type C IC, WiFi, and PMIC seem to be getting better.
Mobile Chips Still On Short Supply
TrendForce has also been watching the mobile phone market. Their report says that material shortages have been slowly getting better from H2 2021. This is because of the adjustments made by phone manufacturers on their mobile phone specifications that may be based on materials that are available on the wider market.
Currently, four key components are in short supply: 4G SoC, OLED DDIC/Touch IC, PMIC, and A+G Sensor. TrendForce is not expecting any big changes in the supply this Q1 2022 compared to the supply of Q4 2021.
As a final note, after the “disappointing holiday demand” Q4 last year that made brands adjust the level of distributed inventory of finished products, production performance in Q1 2022 is expected to fall 13%, compared to the final quarter of last year.
Started his freelancing adventure in 2018 and began doing freelance Audio Engineering work and then started freelance writing a few years later.
Currently he writes for Gadget Pilipinas and formerly wrote for Grit.PH.
He is also a musician, foody, gamer, and PC enthusiast.
