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Apple's supply chain is preparing for production of the iPhone 14. The smartphone design is now being produced in a trial run at some of the company's partners.
The iPhone's annual update cycle is a well-oiled machine, requiring numerous steps and significant investments of time and resources across multiple companies before the planned fall release. The 2022 model, the "iPhone 14," has now apparently reached a crucial stage affecting Apple's supply chain.
Test production to eliminate possible problems
According to UDN, the new design has moved into OEM trial production, a point in the project where the smartphone is produced on a small scale. Trial production is intended to confirm that the design of the new iPhone model is generally production-ready and to eliminate any potential issues before mass production begins. Apple typically conducts trial production in mid- to late February, with assembly partner Luxshare typically involved in the process. The manufacturing partner creates a bill of materials for the project that will be used in future production and calibrates the testing machines for quality assurance. However, it is reported that Luxshare has not received an order for production services at this time, raising suspicions that there is a change in manufacturing.
iPhone 14 to include important design changes
Luxshare has received the first assembly order for the iPhone 13 Pro, securing approximately 3% of the orders in 2021. Since the production order is believed to be an indicator of future orders from Apple, it is suspected that Luxshare will not be heavily involved in the assembly of the Pro model, but will be involved in the assembly of the standard model. In 2021, Luxshare is said to have assembled around 6.5 million iPhones, accounting for approximately 3% of the OEM orders. The "iPhone 14" and "iPhone 14 Pro" are expected to launch in the fall and will feature several key design changes, including a reduced camera bump and the elimination of the infamous notch in favor of a punch-hole camera. (Image: Jon Prosser x Rendersbyan)
