Today, Ming-Chi Kuo released his latest report. The report pointed out that Navitas is expected to receive orders from Apple and all Android brands in 2021, and TSMC is its main supplier. Due to TSMC’s limited capacity for GaN Epi wafers, TSMC will outsource Navitas’ GaN Epi wafer orders to Epistar.
Ming-Chi Kuo predicts that Apple will launch 2 to 3 new chargers in 2021, and PD fast charging technology for Android devices will become the mainstream charging solution for the included chargers.
Kuo said that Apple’s mini LED product shipments were significantly better than expected, so shipments for 2021 and 2022 have been increased by 350% and 450% to 10-12 million units and 25-28 million units, respectively.
In addition, the latest survey indicates that due to Sanan Optoelectronics’ lower-than-expected yield improvement for Mini LEDs, Epistar is expected to capture over 90% of the market share in 2021, almost equivalent to being Apple’s exclusive supplier.
Kuo predicts that Apple’s two new MacBook Pro models in 2021 and the low-cost new MacBook Air in 2022 will all adopt mini LED panels. The adoption rate and shipment growth of mini LED in MacBooks will surpass that of the iPad series, and MacBook is expected to be the main driving force of mini LED panel shipments.
Finally, the report points out that under an optimistic scenario, with the adoption of Apple Silicon and a new design, MacBook’s annual shipments are expected to grow by about 100% over three years, meaning its shipments will increase to 30 to 35 million units.
Epistar can also benefit significantly from non-Apple Mini LED products. Ming-Chi Kuo predicts that the main growth drivers for non-Apple Mini LED in 2021 and 2022 will come from Mini LED TVs, laptops, monitors, and car monitors.