LiteOn, the favorite new kid on the block of many CD Freaks visitors has announced it will expand their production line in China. This will increase the amount of optical units the company will be able to ship.
The article also mentions that Lite-On will launch a slim-type combo (DVD-ROM/CD-RW) drive in the second quarter.
The company will shortly begin construction of a factory in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province (China) with a monthly capacity of 1.5 million units. It should be ready for volume production by year-end. |
Lite-On IT said its monthly shipments in the first quarter will remain at 2.3 million to 2.5 million optical disc drives. The second quarter is still expected to be the slow season, and current capacity should be enough to satisfy demand through that time.
However, starting in the second half, orders will begin to exceed capacity. Lite-On IT plans to subcontract production of 500,000 units each month until its new facilities are ready.
Lite-On IT's existing Dongguan, Guangdong Province factory can produce up to three million optical disc drives a month. Once the Guangzhou factory is completed, Lite-On IT will combine and realign production lines at Dongguan and Guangzhou, making its total monthly capacity four million units. That should be enough to satisfy demand for the next two years.
Lite-On IT currently ships 800,000-900,000 CD-ROM drives, 800,000 to one million CD-RW drives and 300,000-400,000 DVD-ROM drives each month. It has set a target of shipping eight million units in the first quarter, up from 6.5 million units in the previous quarter.
Well if they even produce more units will this also mean that prices will drop even more ? Read more in this article on Digitimes.
Source: Digitimes.com
