*** Taiwanese MB Manufacturers Halt DDR MB Production!! ***
Samson Yu, Taipei; Liu Yi-fang, DigiTimes.com [Thursday 24 May 2001]
Sales and market acceptance of DDR SDRAM-based motherboards have not been rising and Taiwanese first-tier motherboard makers like Asustek Computer, Gigabyte Technology and Micro-Star International (MSI) have recently suspended their development of new DDR products. They noted that the downturn in the PC market has caused two trends in the market. The Pentium 4 is dominating the high-end market, while low-price PC133 SDRAM-compatible motherboards are more and more popular, grabbing market share from DDR motherboards.
Intel’s large price cuts in the Pentium 4 resulted in shipments of Pentium 4-based motherboards rising in May. Asustek’s Pentium 4 motherboard shipments jump to 97,000-100,000 this month from 30,000 units per month in the first quarter of this year. MSI has received a large number of orders from regional distributors, with monthly shipments surging 50%. Gigabyte is also enjoying slight increases in Pentium 4-based motherboard shipments in May. In contrast, DDR motherboard shipments, after reaching their peak in March due to VIA Technologies and Nanya Technology’s bundle sale projects in that month, have gradually declined. Currently, first-tier motherboard makers on average are shipping 50,000-80,000 DDR units a month.
Motherboard makers pointed out that the gloomy outlook for the PC market means system manufacturers will not be interested in products based on a new architecture. Of the present motherboard lines, PC133 SDRAM motherboards are very mature products, and their low prices make them consumers’ top choice. Moreover, the combination of DDR SDRAM and Pentium III only boosts performance by less than 10%. For consumers, DDR motherboards are not attractive enough in price or performance.
Gigabyte noted that, at present, its OEM clients have larger demand for development of Socket 478 motherboards that support PC133 memory, and its present product lines are sufficient to meet the current demand. Asustek pointed out that because of rapid drops in DDR memory prices, distributors in the clone market, who were originally expected to be the driving force of DDR demand, are currently not ordering DDR modules without first receiving orders from consumers. They have even taken to ordering DDR motherboards weekly to avoid losses resulting from DDR SDRAM price declines. The average sales price (ASP) of DDR motherboards has plunged to US$80 from US$120, the price when they first entered the market. However, demand has failed to pick up and therefore new products are not needed.
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