Nokia slow to incorporate new chips into production

March 27, 2016

Nokia announced last year that it was planning to start buying chips from a wider range of chip makers. However, as of yet, Nokia have been slow in purchasing new chips, leaving the industry wondering whether or not Nokia will release a mobile phone this year with a chip from a new supplier. It is now believed that 2017 is the earliest possible point at which handsets with chips from new suppliers could be released.

None of the handsets to be launched in the first half of this year use chips from Infineon Technologies or Broadcom, two of Nokia’s new chip suppliers. It is not clear whether handsets using chips from these makers will be released in the second half of 2016.

Because of Nokia’s strict component strategy, it usually takes between one and two years for components from new suppliers to be incorporated in Nokia handsets. Nokia ensures that price, technology and service levels are all competitive before adopting new suppliers.

There are speculations that Nokia has already approved system on chip (SoC) solutions from Texas Instruments and Infineon. However, Nokia has yet to announce handset using solutions from these makers.