Monday, April 12th 2021

Global Chip Shortage Takes Another Toll... Now Your Home Router?

The global supply of semiconductor processors has been at risk lately. Starting from GPUs to CPUs, the demand for both has been much greater than the available supply. Manufacturing companies, such as TSMC, have been expanding capacities, however, they have not yet been able to satisfy the demand. We have seen the results of that demand in a form of the scarcity of the latest generation of graphics cards, covering NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 3000 series Ampere, and AMD' Radeon RX 6000 series Big Navi graphics cards. Consumers have had a difficult time sourcing them and they have seen artificial price increase that is much higher than their original MSRP.

However, it doesn't seem like the situation will improve. According to the latest reporting from Bloomberg, the next victim of global chip shortage is... you guessed it, your home internet router. The cited sources have noted that the waiting list to get a batch of ordered routers has doubled the waiting time, from the regular 30 weeks to 60-week waiting time. This represents a waiting list that is more than a year long. With the global COVID-19 pandemic still going strong, there is an increased need for better home router equipment, and delays can only hurt broadband providers that supply routers. Taiwan-based router manufacturer Zyxel Communications, notes that the company has seen massive demand for their equipment. Such a massive demand could lead to insufficient supply, which could increase prices of routers well above their MSRP and bring scarcity of them as well.
Source: Bloomberg
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32 Comments on Global Chip Shortage Takes Another Toll... Now Your Home Router?

#26
Caring1
LuminescentI wonder, how much silicon is in a phone and why there is no shortage there, every day new phones get released.
All those silicon spatulas in Jensen's kitchen explains the shortage.
Posted on Reply
#27
R0H1T
LuminescentI wonder, how much silicon is in a phone and why there is no shortage there, every day new phones get released.
Because the phone+tablet market is much bigger than PC+servers combined? You do know how much money Apple makes, primarily on the back of phones, not to mention Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi, BBK electronics? It's not even a contest ~ phones are around the top of the queue, with Apple being the undisputed leader there!
Posted on Reply
#28
R-T-B
LuminescentI wonder, how much silicon is in a phone and why there is no shortage there, every day new phones get released.
Phones are predicted to be next feeling the pinch.

Already, it's almost impossible to get a free phone with a contract like before. Writing is on the wall.
Posted on Reply
#29
Luminescent
R-T-BPhones are predicted to be next feeling the pinch.
It should but the competition is so big that i don't see it happening.
Maybe some markets like discrete gpu's and now routers are considered too small and get the usual rare products that have high prices.
System integrators get gpu's at msrp, Xbox and Playstation are dirt cheap and have a big ass 7nm chip in there, all big shots in tech can get at usual prices except people who build their own computer.
Posted on Reply
#30
mechtech
I'm by no means a conspiracy guy, but one has to wonder if there is background collusion happening.
Posted on Reply
#31
billEST
R-T-BPhones are predicted to be next feeling the pinch.

Already, it's almost impossible to get a free phone with a contract like before. Writing is on the wall.
error : smoke cloud :p
Posted on Reply
#32
R-T-B
billESTerror : smoke cloud :p
I don't understand what you mean.
LuminescentIt should but the competition is so big that i don't see it happening.
Competition isn't the only thing at play here. When there isn't enough, prices go up, period. Fake MSRPs settle the "competition."
Posted on Reply
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