Sharp set to deliver Apple TV parts to Foxconn in Q3?
According to a report out of China, the timeline has been pushed up a bit, since Foxconn wasn't expecting to get Apple TV parts until the fourth quarter.
Foxconn, a manufacturer for Apple, will receive parts from Sharp next quarter that will be used to assemble the long-rumored Apple TV, according to a new report.
According to AppleInsider, Chinese news site 21cbh.com is reporting today, citing sources, that Foxconn initially expected to have the parts from Sharp in the fourth quarter, but the timetable has shifted to the third quarter. Sharp is believed to be providing the LCD TV panels that will be used in the television.
Over the last several months, reports have suggested Sharp would play a role in the Apple TV after Hon Hai Precision, Foxconn's Taiwan-based parent, acquired an 11 percent stake in the company. Hon Hai also acquired 46.5 percent equity in Sharp's LCD TV factory in Sakai, Japan. Last month, Foxconn chief Terry Gou said in an interview with China Daily that the Sharp acquisition resulted from preparations the company is making for Apple's upcoming television.
Apple has stopped short of even admitting that it's launching a television, so any report on the matter should be taken with the proverbial grain of salt. However, according to 21cbh.com, it's possible that the device could be unveiled before the end of this year. Conventional wisdom has pegged the device's eventual release in 2013 or 2014.
CNET has contacted both Apple and Foxconn for comment on the report. We will update this story when we have more information.
(Via Apple Insider)