Kuo has posted yet another round of Tweets this morning. Firstly, Kuo touched on Apple's 'acoustic product' refresh cycle will be in the 2H24-1H25 timeline. The following new products will likely start mass production in 2H24 at the earliest.

• HomePod mini 2.
• AirPods Max 2.
• AirPods low-cost version.

On Goertek

Kuo notes that while investors are worried about Goertek's loss of orders due to AirPods Pro 2 quality problems affecting existing and future orders, Goertek is expected to resume AirPods Pro 2 production.

Goertek AirPods 2, AirPods 3 and other part orders have been determined not to be affected. In addition, Goertek has received HomePod mini 2 New Product Introduction (NPI) and assembly orders and is expected to ship in large quantities in 2H24.

The conclusion is that the worst of Goertek’s negative impact due to AirPods Pro 2 quality problems has passed, and the current situation is far better than investors thought.

AOET: iPad Lens Supplier

Kuo research further indicates that Taiwan's 'Ability opto-Electronics Technology' (AOET), currently the largest lens supplier for Mac, will begin shipping iPad lenses starting from 2H23. Three trends are worth paying attention to for AOET’s future growth.

Benefiting from the new iPad orders, AOET’s revenue and profit in 2H23 could grow YoY amid the recession. Looking into the mid-to-long term, AOET could follow in the footsteps of Sunny Optical’s growth in Apple’s lens supply chain by first getting iPad orders, then increasing the supply ratio of iPad orders, and eventually obtaining iPhone orders.

Largan shares design and manufacturing experience with AOET, which is one of the keys for AOET to become a new lens supplier for the iPad. For Largan (the largest shareholder of AOET), it is a win-win strategy for both parties to assist AOET in obtaining lens orders with a relatively low gross margin. In addition, AOET can use Largan’s patents to defend itself against competitors and protect future orders.