New car buyers across China, the United States, China, and across the globe face limited availability and dealers that cannot compromise on price. This is all due to the worldwide shortage of chips that has led the Biden administration to endorse legislation thatincluding US 522 billion in federal government subsidies in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing.
However, the issue goes beyond the new car. A report from The Information discovered that 70% of retail stores that sell wireless products within the United States faced smartphone shortages. Graphics card prices remain far over the manufacturer’s suggested retail price and have shown no signs of slowing down. Game consoles draw long lines of hundreds for a whole year after launch. Televisions are also costlier and harder to locate than they were last year.
It’s easy to imagine this as an unavoidable COVID-related supply-chain deficit, but there isn’t. The issue isn’t the quantity of PlayStation 5 consoles in stock. The problem is with the line of people ahead of you.
PlayStation’s PlayStation 5 sales data illustrates the complexity of the problem. Global sales of the PlayStation 5 outpace those of the PlayStation 4 at this moment in the cycle. PS5 has been sold more rapidly than other game consoles that Sony has ever made. Similar trends are evident for smartphones, computers as well as video games, as well as tablets. All had an increase in year-over-year sales in the first quarter of 2021. It’s a remarkable feat considering the record-breaking locked-down-driven peak of 2020.
The grave shortage of chips hinders the manufacturing of cars, the biggest and most expensive of all our devices. It’s not a good idea to believe that the need limits the supply of smaller devices, which are rushing into stores only to disappear from the store shelves.
The problems in the automotive industry result from the severe shortage of chips. However, that’s not the case. Consumer tech is flooding into shops and then exploding across the aisles.
Expect unrelenting costs and extremely long lead times that only increase. If you’re looking for genuinely sought-after gadgets to open to celebrate the holidays, be it an Xbox or the brand new iPad Mini, it may already be too late to purchase it (from an online retailer but at the very least, eBay). You should also think ahead for the next year because there’s no evidence that supply will be able to catch up by 2022.
It could cause a stir for consumers; however, the impact on tech companies for consumers is more dangerous. The record demand is generally favorable. However, the sudden increase has prompted a battle for chips that only the most prominent companies can take home. Rumors suggest that Apple has secured the majority but not all advanced chip production by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world’s largest independent semiconductor foundry. Apple’s contract contains 100 million chips for the new iPads, iPhones, and MacBooks. Companies with large budgets, such as Qualcomm, have had difficulty competing with Apple’s size and quantity.
The big moves of large companies can have the effect of delay in the implementation of innovative ideas by lesser-known players. A crank-powered gaming console, a customizable LED face mask, and an incredibly small, 200-watt USB power source are only three of hundreds of possible examples. This could result in an unintentional, unfortunate squeeze on the smallest tech startups, disrupting the most conservative timeline for production. Backers could be faced with ever-growing wait times. Some may give up and ask for an immediate refund.
Do you have to be content with the long lines and stock notifications for a long time? Perhaps not. The investment in production could keep pace with demand in 2023. Analysts in the industry are worried that this could result in a price collapse when semiconductor companies overshoot. 2023 may be when you have the chance to buy the latest technology for your home in minutes but several hours after its release. In the meantime, you’ll need to wait.
