Apple supplier Qorvo guides high for Sept. quarter, suggesting strong 'iPhone 7' orders

Qorvo, a supplier of RF components to Apple, is offering strong guidance for the September quarter that hints at a healthy "iPhone 7" ramp and possibly even the phone shipping a week earlier than usual, an analyst claimed on Wednesday.

The company is guiding revenue forecasts over $100 million higher than Wall Street consensus, noted Wells Fargo's Maynard Um in a memo seen by AppleInsider. That's said to imply a sequential growth of 19 percent — stronger even than the 15 percent seen with the iPhone 6 launch in 2014. It's also higher than fellow Apple supplier Skyworks' guidance for the September quarter, pointing to a 10 to 11 percent increase.

Um cautioned that it's difficult to gauge how important Apple's contribution will be to Qorvo, since factors like demand from Chinese phone manufacturers could be driving up revenue as well.

The performance of Apple suppliers has become unusually significant in 2016, since the "iPhone 7" lineup has sometimes described as another interim refresh ahead of more important 2017 models. If so, Apple might decide to keep production levels modest.

Other suppliers have provided mixed signals. While some have posted positive results and forecasts, Foxconn chairman Terry Gou reportedly told staff to expect weak iPhone sales until early 2017.

A recent rumor indicated that new iPhones will ship on Sept. 16, which would be roughly one week earlier in the month than 2015's iPhone 6s launch.

13 Comments

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blastdoor 15 Years · 3599 comments

About 8 years ago

I think any projections are highly contingent on how the the audio jack issue plays out.

If the audio jack rumors are true, then Apple had better have an incredibly compelling argument for why removing that jack is good for users. I want to believe that they will have such an argument... but if they don't, it will be a disaster.

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dick applebaum 17 Years · 12525 comments

blastdoor said:

I think any projections are highly contingent on how the the audio jack issue plays out.

If the audio jack rumors are true, then Apple had better have an incredibly compelling argument for why removing that jack is good for users. I want to believe that they will have such an argument... but if they don't, it will be a disaster.

I think you are overly concerned about the audio jack issue -- there are several compelling reasons to abandon the current jack:
Better waterproofing
Better (thinner) design flexibility
Reduced internal space
Apple could mitigate any potential issues by including/offering an adapter for those who need it.

I suspect that Apple will continue to provide earbuds with the iPhone (with the appropriate jack)

Finally, 2 years from now this will be a non-issue!

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cintos 17 Years · 113 comments

blastdoor said:

I think any projections are highly contingent on how the the audio jack issue plays out.

If the audio jack rumors are true, then Apple had better have an incredibly compelling argument for why removing that jack is good for users. I want to believe that they will have such an argument... but if they don't, it will be a disaster.

Waterproofing?

"Um cautioned that it's difficult to gauge how important Apple's contribution will be to Qorvo, since factors like demand from Chinese phone manufacturers could be driving up revenue as well. " Interesting: when suppliers point to a downturn, its always Apple's fault regardless if they are only 27% of a given company's business.

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TurboPGT 9 Years · 355 comments

blastdoor said:

I think any projections are highly contingent on how the the audio jack issue plays out.

If the audio jack rumors are true, then Apple had better have an incredibly compelling argument for why removing that jack is good for users. I want to believe that they will have such an argument... but if they don't, it will be a disaster.

No one will even notice, let alone care. Do you really not understand the market at all? Let me explain it to you then.

99.9% of iPhone buyers, that use headphones to listen to music on their iPhone, use the EarPods that ship with them. Apple will continue to ship, people will continue to use, life will continue uninterrupted.

The only people that think this even matters are the fringe of the fringe, who overpaid for expensive analog headphones, that don't sound any better than cheap analog headphones and don't want to acknowledge that such tech is dead, and they are among the only people dumb enough to spend money on keeping that business alive.

All of the profits in the current headphone industry are in wireless headphones. Why do you think that is? There is no market left for overpriced wired analog headphones.

Oh and lets not forget, the 100 different times Apple has abandoned a dead legacy technology that "is on every existing device in the world", which is "sure to be a disaster", and of course is not a disaster at all, the boldness of it gets them nothing but free press and more sales, and then within a year the tech they abandoned is dead and the rest of world is rushing to catch up.

But no, please...go on about removing the headphone jack is a disaster. It will make for hilarious reflection down the road.