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Quanta gets a boost from Apple by way of new iMac

Quanta Computer Corp (廣達電腦) has been tapped by Apple Computer to manufacture the new iMac computer, local media said yesterday. Quanta will produce up to a million of the computers and 600,000 LCD screens from subsidiary Quanta Display, the report said.

The Taiwanese firm outbid local rival Hon Hai Precision Industries Co (鴻海精密), to win the new LCD display orders. Quanta officials refused to comment on the report.

Hon Hai produced one million monitors last year for an older version of the iMac and is expected to continue supplying Apple with up to 800,000 monitors this year.

News of the contract sent shares of Quanta surging on the TAIEX, ending trading at NT$142 per share.

Unveiled on Tuesday in San Francisco by Apple's co-founder and CEO, Steve Jobs, the new iMac is winning rave reviews for its futuristic design.

Quanta makes Powerbooks for Apple and provides LCD screens to other lines of the company.

The firm is Taiwan's top notebook computer maker, expecting revenues to top US$5 billion on sales of around six million notebooks. The company supplies a number of the world's top firms, including Dell Computer Corp, Compaq Computer Corp as well as Apple.

The new iMac is expected to provide the company a shot in the arm as observers have said that the original iMac, released three years ago, has fallen out of step with changing consumer trends. Apple's market share has settled to less than 5 percent of the market in the US.

The new iMacs feature white domed bases with 15-inch flat panel monitors attached by a telescopic arm. They cost between US$1,300 and US$1,800 each with the flagship model featuring an 800MHz G4 processor, 256Mbit of memory, a 60Gbit hard drive and a "superdrive" that can burn CDs and DVDs.
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