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The performance and technical requirements of the circuit board are related to the structure type of the circuit board and the selected substrate. Different types (rigid and flexible), different structures (single-sided, double-sided, multi-layer, with or without blind holes, buried holes, etc.), different substrates of PCB boards, performance indicators are different. Its performance level, like product design, is usually divided into three levels according to the scope of use, PCB manufacturers describe the complexity of the product, the degree of functional requirements and the frequency of testing and inspection. The acceptance requirements and reliability of products of different performance levels increase according to the level.   Level 1 - General electronic products: mainly consumer electronic products and some computers and peripherals. There are no strict requirements for the appearance of this type of PCB board, and the main requirement is that there should be complete circuit functions to meet the requirements of use. Level 2 - Dedicated service electronic products: including computers, communication equipment, complex commercial electronic equipment, instruments, meters and some use requirements are not very demanding products. This kind of product requires a long life and requires uninterrupted work, but the working environment is not bad. The appearance of some products is not perfect, but the performance should be intact and have a certain reliability. Level 3 - High reliability products: including equipment with strict continuous performance requirements, equipment that does not allow downtime during operation, and equipment used for precision weapons and life support. PCB processing printed board is not only functional integrity, requires uninterrupted work, and can work normally at any time, has a strong environmental adaptability, and should have a high degree of insurance and reliability. For such products, strict quality assurance measures should be taken from design to product acceptance, and some reliability tests should be done if necessary.   PCB board processing out of different levels of PCB suppliers in not all the performance requirements are different, some performance requirements are the same, some performance indicators of the degree of rigor and accuracy, tolerance and reliability requirements are different. The performance requirements of PCB processing manufacturers mainly include appearance, size, mechanical properties, physical properties, electrical properties, chemical properties and other properties. The following will be based on IPC-A-600G and IPC-6011 series standards, according to the performance of these aspects are introduced. The performance indicators that are not specifically stated are the same for all levels of products, and different requirements will be explained separately.   In order to more clearly show the quality status of the product at the time of acceptance, and give a more intuitive description, the quality status of the printed board in the IPC-A-600G standard is divided into ideal, accept and reject three states: Ideal state: A desired state, close to perfect but attainable. In fact, because the design quality and processing level of printed board graphics are generally not easy to achieve, the ideal state is not a necessary requirement for reception. Receiving status: It is the basic requirement to ensure the necessary functional integrity and reliability of PCB board manufacturers under the conditions of their use, but it is not necessarily perfect, and it is the basic condition for product reception. The receiving status of different levels of products, some items are the same, and some items are different, which are described exclusively in the article. Reject state: A state that exceeds the minimum requirements for receiving, and the printed board in this state is not sufficient to ensure the performance and reliability of the product under the conditions of use. For different grades of products and different acceptance items, the conditions for rejection may be different.

The materials used in the production of circuit board processing contain many harmful substances, and many harmful substances will be produced in the production process, especially the "three wastes" produced, which will cause great harm to the environment. If left to itself, it will not only have a serious impact on the sustainable development of society and economy, but also cause great harm to the human body. Therefore, for the printed board production industry, from the beginning of product design to the entire manufacturing and use of the whole process must be strictly controlled materials, improve the production process, the use of advanced pollution-free or low-pollution technology, as well as the printed board electroplating and chemical production process into the "three wastes" for strict monitoring and scientific management. Strengthen the clean production management of printed board, which is related to the survival of the circuit board processing plant production enterprises. PCB board processing clean production concept and content Clean production includes two aspects of clean production process and clean production products. In the concept of cleaner production, it includes not only technical feasibility, but also economic profitability. It should fully reflect the unity of economic benefits, environmental benefits and social benefits. one Cleaner production refers to the continuous application of environmental strategies of comprehensive prevention in production processes and products to reduce the harm to humans and the living environment. For the production process, cleaner production includes saving raw materials and energy, eliminating toxic raw materials, and reducing the quantity and toxicity of all emissions and wastes before they leave the production process; For products, cleaner production strategies mean reducing the impact of a product on the human environment throughout its life cycle, from the processing of raw materials to the final disposal of the product. Cleaner production is achieved by applying specialized technology, improving process and changing management. The purpose of cleaner production is to realize rational utilization of resources and slow down the depletion of resources through comprehensive utilization of resources, substitution of scarce resources, utilization of secondary energy, energy saving, water saving and material saving. In the production process, reduce or eliminate the generation and emission of pollutants and waste, promote the compatibility of printed board industrial production and product consumption process with the environment, and reduce the harm to human beings and the living environment throughout the production cycle. Circuit board   2. Clean production to "energy saving and consumption reduction, comprehensive utilization, pollution reduction and efficiency" as the goal; Strengthen training, improve the ideological awareness and technical quality of employees in cleaner production, strengthen production management, rely on technological progress, adopt reasonable and practical process technology and other measures; In line with the principle of treating pollution first, try not to use or use less harmful substances, so that the production of pollutants in the production process, emissions to achieve the minimum and harmless, and the waste in the production process to achieve resources.  

Printed circuit boards, also known as printed circuit boards, are providers of electrical connections for electronic components. It has a history of more than 100 years; Its design is mainly layout design; The main advantage of using circuit boards is to greatly reduce wiring and assembly errors, improve the level of automation and production labor rate. Today, the macro link circuit Xiaobian takes you to understand the circuit board exposure skills and basic knowledge. The first is exposure When PCB manufacturers process the board, under ultraviolet light, the photoinitiator absorbs the light energy and decomposes into free groups, which then trigger the photopolymeric monomer for polymerization crosslinking reaction, and forms a large molecular structure insoluble in dilute alkali solution after the reaction. Exposure is generally carried out in the automatic double-sided exposure machine, and now the exposure machine can be divided into air-cooled and water-cooled according to the different cooling methods of the light source. Factors affecting the quality of exposure imaging In addition to the performance of dry film photoresist, the selection of light source, the control of exposure time (exposure amount), and the quality of photographic substrate are all important factors affecting the quality of exposure imaging. 1) Choice of light source Any kind of dry film has its own unique spectral absorption curve, and any kind of light source has its own emission spectral curve. If the main peak of spectral absorption of a certain dry film can overlap or mostly overlap with the main peak of spectral emission of a certain light source, the two match well and the exposure effect is good. The spectral absorption curve of domestic dry film shows that the spectral absorption range is 310-440nm (nm). From the spectral energy distribution of several light sources, it can be seen that the pick lamp, high-pressure mercury lamp and iodogallium lamp have a large relative radiation intensity in the wavelength range of 310-440nm, which is an ideal light source for dry film exposure. Xenon lamps are not suitable for dry film exposure. After the type of light source is selected, a light source with high power should also be considered. Because the light intensity is large, the resolution is high, and the exposure time is short, the degree of heat deformation of the photographic plate is small. In addition, the lamp design is also very important, to try to make the incident light uniformity is good, high parallelism, in order to avoid or reduce the poor effect after exposure. 2) Control of exposure time (exposure amount) In the exposure process, the photopolymerization reaction of the dry film is not "one primer" or "one exposure is ready", but generally through three stages. Due to the presence of oxygen or other harmful impurities in the dry film, it needs to go through an induction process, in which the free group generated by the decomposition of the initiator is consumed by oxygen and impurities, and the polymerization of monomers is very small. However, when the induction period passes, the photopolymerization reaction of the monomer takes place quickly, and the viscosity of the film increases rapidly, close to the degree of mutation, which is the stage of rapid consumption of the photosensitive monomer, and the proportion of time in the exposure process of this stage is very small. When most of the photosensitive monomer is consumed, it enters the monomer depletion zone, and this time the polymerization reaction has been completed. Correct control of exposure time is a very important factor to obtain excellent dry film image. When the exposure is insufficient, due to the incomplete polymerization of monomers, during the development process, the film melts and becomes soft, the lines are not clear, the color is dull, and even degumming. In the pre-plating treatment or electroplating process, the film warps, permeates and even falls off. When the exposure is too much, it will cause difficulties in developing, brittle film, leaving residual glue and other ills. What is more serious is that incorrect exposure will produce a deviation of the image line width, excessive exposure will make the graphic plating line thinner, make the printed etching line thicker, on the contrary, underexposure makes the graphic plating line thicker, make the printed etching line thinner. How to determine the correct exposure time? Due to the different exposure machines used by various manufacturers of films, that is, the light source, the power of the lamp and the lamp distance are different, it is difficult for dry film manufacturers to recommend a fixed exposure time. Foreign companies producing dry film have their own or recommended use of some kind of optical density ruler, the dry film factory is marked with the recommended imaging level, China's dry film manufacturers do not have their own optical density ruler, usually recommend the use of iston 17 or stouffer 21 optical density ruler. The optical density of the Rayston 17 optical density scale is 0.5, and the optical density difference AD increases by 0.05 for each subsequent stage, until the optical density of the 17 level is 1.30. The optical density of the Stuffer 2l optical density scale is 0.05, and then each stage increases with the optical density difference △D by 0.15 to the optical density of the 2l level is 3.05. When the optical density scale is exposed, the light density is small (that is, more transparent) grade, the dry film accepts more ultraviolet light energy, and the polymerization is more complete, and the light density is large (that is, the degree of transparency is poor) grade, the dry film accepts less ultraviolet light energy, and the polymerization does not occur or the polymerization is incomplete, and is displayed or only left part of it during development. In this way, different exposure times can be used to obtain different imaging levels. The use of Ruston 17 optical density ruler is described as follows: a. When exposure is made, the film is downward; b. Put the film on the copper-clad plate for 15 minutes and then expose it. c. After exposure, leave for 30 minutes to develop. Any exposure time is selected as the reference exposure time, expressed by Tn, and the series left after development is called the reference series. The recommended use series is compared with the reference series, and calculated according to the coefficient table of [sensitive word]. Series difference     Coefficient K     Series difference     Coefficient K     one     1.122     6     2.000     2     1.259     7     2.239     3     1.413     8     2.512     4     1.585     9     2.818     5     1.778     10     3.162     When the use series needs to be increased compared to the reference series, the exposure time of the use series T = KTR. When the use series needs to be reduced compared to the reference series, the exposure time of the use series T = TR/K. In this way, the exposure time can be determined by only one test. In the case of no light density scale can also be observed by experience, using the method of gradually increasing the exposure time, according to the brightness of the dry film after development, whether the image is clear, whether the image line width is consistent with the original negative to determine the appropriate exposure time. Strictly speaking, it is unscientific to measure exposure by time, because the intensity of the light source often changes with fluctuations in external voltage and the aging of the lamp. The light energy is defined by the formula E = IT, where E represents the total exposure, in millijoules per square centimeter; I represents the intensity of light in milliwatts per square centimeter; T is the exposure time, in seconds. As can be seen from the above formula, the total exposure E varies with the light intensity I and the exposure time T. When the exposure time T is constant, the light intensity I changes, and the total exposure amount also changes, so although the exposure time is strictly controlled, the total exposure amount accepted by the dry film at each exposure is not necessarily the same, and the degree of polymerization is different. To make each exposure the same energy, a light energy integrator is used to measure the exposure. The principle is that when the light intensity I changes, the exposure time T can be automatically adjusted to keep the total exposure E unchanged. 3) The quality of the photographic substrate The quality of the photographic substrate is mainly manifested in two aspects: optical density and dimensional stability. For optical density, the optical density Dmax is greater than 4, and the minimum optical density Dmin is less than 0.2. Optical density refers to the lower limit of the surface light blocking film in the left ultraviolet light of the base plate, that is, when the optical blocking density of the opaque area of the base plate exceeds 4, a good light blocking purpose can be achieved. The minimum optical density refers to the upper limit of light blocking presented by the transparent film outside the backplate in ultraviolet light, that is, when the optical density Dmin of the transparent area of the backplate is less than 0.2, good light transmission can be achieved. The dimensional stability of the photographic substrate (referring to changes in temperature, humidity and storage time) will directly affect the dimensional accuracy and image overlap of the printed board, and the serious expansion or reduction of the photographic substrate size will cause the photographic substrate image to deviate from the drilling of the printed board. The original domestic SO hard film is affected by temperature and humidity, the size changes greatly, the temperature coefficient and humidity coefficient are about (50-60)×10-6 / ℃ and (50-60)×10-6 / %, for a length of about 400mm S0 base version, the size change in winter and summer can reach 0.5-1mm, The distance from half a hole to a hole may be skewed when imaging on a printed board. Therefore, the production, use and storage of photographic plates are in a constant temperature and humidity environment. The use of thick polyester based silver salt sheets (e.g. 0.18mm) and diazo sheets can improve the dimensional stability of photographic substrates. In addition to the above three main factors, the vacuum system of the exposure machine and the choice of vacuum frame materials will also affect the quality of exposure imaging. Exposure positioning 1) Visual positioning Visual positioning is usually suitable for the use of diazo plates, diazo plates are brown or orange translucent; However, it is not transparent to ultraviolet light, through the diazo image, the welding pad of the bottom plate is aligned with the hole of the printed board, and the exposure can be fixed with tape. 2) Out of stock positioning system positioning The out-of-stock positioning system includes a photographic film punch and a double round hole out. The positioning method is as follows: first, align the front and back plates of the drug film under the microscope; Use a film punch to punch two positioning holes outside the effective image of the base plate. Take one of the base plate with the positioning holes and program the drilling process to obtain the data tape with the component holes and positioning holes drilled at the same time. After drilling the component holes and positioning holes at one time, the metalizing holes of the printed board and the pre-copper plating, the double round holes can be used for positioning exposure. 3) Fix pin positioning The fixed pin is divided into two sets of systems, one set of fixed photographic plate, the other set of fixed printed board, by adjusting the position of the two pins, to achieve the coincidence and alignment of the photographic plate and printed board. After exposure, the polymerization reaction will continue for a period of time, in order to ensure the stability of the process, do not immediately remove the polyester film after exposure, so that the polymerization reaction can continue. Remove the polyester film before development.

Perhaps some people who have just contacted the circuit board factory will be strange, the substrate of the circuit board only has copper foil on both sides, and the insulation layer in the middle, so they do not need to be conductive between the two sides of the circuit board or multiple layers of the line? How can the two sides of the line be connected together so that the current passes smoothly? [Sensitive word] Please see the circuit board manufacturer for you to analyze this magical process - sunk copper (PTH). Copper Plating is short for Eletcroless Plating Copper, also known as Plated Through hole (PTH), is a self-catalyzed REDOX reaction. The PTH process is performed after two or multiple layers of boards are drilled.   The role of PTH: On the non-conductive hole wall substrate that has been drilled, a thin layer of chemical copper is deposited by chemical method to serve as the base for the subsequent plating of copper.   PTH process decomposition: alkaline degreasing → secondary or tertiary counter-current rinsing → roughing (microetching) → secondary counter-current rinsing → pre-leaching → activation → secondary counter-current rinsing → decagging → secondary counter-current rinsing → copper deposition → secondary counter-current rinsing → acid leaching   PTH detailed process explanation: 1. Alkaline oil removal: remove the oil, fingerprints, oxides, dust in the hole; The pore wall is adjusted from negative charge to positive charge to facilitate the adsorption of colloidal palladium in the later process. Cleaning after oil removal shall be carried out in strict accordance with the requirements of the guidelines, and the copper backlight test shall be used for detection.   2. Micro-corrosion: remove the oxide of the plate surface, coarser the plate surface, and ensure that the subsequent copper deposition layer and the substrate bottom copper have a good bonding force; The newly formed copper surface has strong activity and can adsorb colloidal palladium well.   3. Prepreg: It mainly protects the palladium tank from the pollution of the pretreatment tank solution and prolongates the service life of the palladium tank. The main components are the same as the palladium tank except palladium chloride, which can effectively wet the pore wall and facilitate the subsequent activation liquid to enter the hole in time for sufficient and effective activation;   4. Activation: After adjusting the polarity of pre-treated alkaline degreasing, the positively charged pore wall can effectively adsorb enough negatively charged colloidal palladium particles to ensure the average, continuity and density of subsequent copper deposition; Therefore, oil removal and activation are very important to the quality of subsequent copper deposition. Control points: set time; Standard stannous ion and chloride ion concentration; Specific gravity, acidity and temperature are also very important and should be strictly controlled according to the working instructions.   5. Degumming: Remove the stannous ion coated outside the colloidal palladium particles, so that the palladium core in the colloidal particles is exposed, in order to directly and effectively catalyze the start of chemical copper deposition reaction, experience shows that the use of fluoroboric acid as a degumming agent is a better choice.   6. Copper sedimentation: through the activation of palladium nucleus, the chemical copper self-catalytic reaction is induced, and the new chemical copper and the reaction by-product hydrogen can be used as the reaction catalyst to catalyze the reaction, so that the copper sedimentation reaction is continued. After processing through this step, a layer of chemical copper can be deposited on the surface of the plate or the hole wall. In the process, the tank should maintain normal air stirring to convert more soluble bivalent copper.   The quality of the copper sinking process is directly related to the quality of the production of the circuit board, which is only crucial for the circuit board manufacturers, is the main source of the process of through the hole is blocked, and the short circuit is not convenient for visual inspection, and the post-process can only be probabilistic screening through destructive experiments, and can not effectively analyze and monitor a single PCB board. Therefore, once there is a problem, it must be a batch problem, even if the test can not be completed to eliminate, the final product causes great quality hazards, and can only be scrapped in batch, so it is necessary to strictly operate in accordance with the parameters of the work instructions.

SpaceX announced today that IT aims to launch the seventh Starship test flight mission (IFT-7) at 06:00 Beijing time next Tuesday (January 14).   So far, the Starship has completed six test flights - two in 2023, one each in March, June, October, and November of last year, and the successful October mission achieved the feat of "clipping" the super-heavy booster with a tower, which SpaceX will continue to try with IFT-7. In addition, the mission will be the first test of the upper stage of the block 2 Starship. According to SpaceX's website, its starship electronics have been "completely redesigned," with more than 30 cameras throughout the arrow, 25 percent more propellant, 3.1 meters more height, and a redesigned front flap position.   SpaceX wrote in the mission description that the test flight will be the first attempt to deploy a payload in space - 10 simulated satellites "similar in size and weight to the next generation Starlink satellites, as a first rehearsal for a satellite deployment mission." "The Starlink analog satellite will be in the same suborbit as the starship and will aim to splash down in the Indian Ocean," SpaceX added. IT House notes that the super-heavy booster used in the mission will also be the first attempt to reuse previous hardware, primarily "a Raptor engine launched and recovered from Starship's fifth test flight."

House of T, January 9 news, news source Tim Culpan (Tim Culpan) published a blog post yesterday (January 8), reporting that TSMC Arizona factory (Fab 21) has obtained new product orders from Apple, in addition to producing A16 chips for iPhone, It is also producing a SiP chip (Systems-in-Package) for the Apple Watch, believed to be the S9 SiP chip.   The factory began producing A16 Bionic chips for the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus in September 2024, and the S9 SiP, which is also based on the A16 chip, debuted in 2023. Released with the Apple Watch Series 9 smartwatch. Both the S9 and A16 use TSMC's 4-nanometer process technology (" N4 "), which is the same technical basis for both chips, allowing TSMC to efficiently adapt its Arizona production line to produce both the S9 and A16. Note: Although Apple has now discontinued the Apple Watch Series 9, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 released at the same time still uses the chip.   The source said that the Arizona plant is an important semiconductor manufacturing base for TSMC, but its capacity is still in the early stages. The current operating phase (Phase 1 A) has a monthly production capacity of approximately 10,000 wafers. These wafers are used to produce Apple's A16 and S9 chips, as well as products from other customers such as AMD. The first phase, Phase B, is expected to be completed in early 2025, when the plant's capacity will double to 24,000 wafers per month.

Social media giant Meta announced Wednesday that it will display listings from rival eBay on its Facebook Marketplace platform in response to an antitrust ruling by the European Union. According to Meta's statement, the collaborative testing will start in Germany, France and the United States. Users can browse eBay listings directly on the Facebook Marketplace, but the final completion of the merchandise transaction still needs to be done through the eBay platform. The news sent eBay shares up more than 13% in intraday trading.   In November, the European Union issued an antitrust ruling against Meta for allegedly bundling its classifieds service with Facebook's platform while imposing unfair trading conditions on second-hand goods platform competitors. The ruling ordered Meta to stop the conduct and imposed a hefty fine of 798 million euros ($822 million). However, Meta has made it clear that it does not recognize the EU ruling and has appealed to the EU Court of Justice. However, according to a European Commission spokesperson, Meta is obliged to comply with the decision within 90 days of the original ruling. Meta's antitrust case is one of the last waves of actions against big tech companies under former EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager. Under her leadership, Brussels regulators have imposed billions of euros in fines on a number of tech giants, including a fine of more than 8 billion euros on Alphabet Inc's Google. It is worth noting that in addition to the EU ruling, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has also investigated whether Facebook Marketplace has competition issues. However, unlike the EU's tough attitude, the CMA chose to accept the concessions offered by Meta and ultimately did not further advance the investigation.

Foxconn reported revenue of 654.8 billion yuan (NT $) in December 2024, down 2.64% month on month and up 42.31% year on year, the second-highest in the same period of the calendar year. Revenue in the fourth quarter of 2024 was 2.13 trillion yuan, an increase of 15.03% quarter-on-quarter and 15.17% year-over-year, which was the highest in the same period in the calendar year. The annual revenue in 2024 was 6.8 trillion yuan, an annual increase of 11.37%, the highest in the same period in the calendar year. Looking ahead to the first quarter of 2025, Hon Hai said that although the overall operation is gradually entering the traditional off-season, even in the fourth quarter of 2024, even on the basis of the record single-quarter revenue, it is expected that the seasonal performance of this quarter will still be about the same as the average level of the past five years; Compared to the same period last year, it will be a significant increase. Hon Hai's revenue in December 2024 increased by 42.3% year-on-year, representing the coming trend of AI servers. As for revenue in the fourth quarter of 2024, it hit a record single-quarter high, with both quarterly and year-over-year growth in the range of strong growth, better than the outlook in November last year. At the same time, Nvidia GB200 AI servers have been shipped in a small amount in December 2024 and recognized revenue, and the mass production time is expected to start in late January 2025. In addition, the full-year 2024 revenue performance was better than the company and the market expectations. Hon Hai said its full-year revenue in 2024 increased 11.37% year-on-year, among which the Cloud networking product category, component and other product category and computer terminal product category grew strongly over the same period last year, mainly benefiting from strong demand for AI servers and higher demand for new products. The consumer intelligence category declined slightly from year to year.

Recently, citing foreign media, according to people familiar with the matter, Microsoft plans to launch a new round of layoffs around the world, focusing on those employees who are not performing well, and the specific scale of layoffs is not yet clear. Although Microsoft is keeping quiet about the exact number of layoffs, many of the affected jobs are expected to be replaced by new positions, meaning that the overall number of employees at Microsoft will not change much. A spokesman for the company has confirmed the job cuts, saying they are a continuation of job cuts over the past two years. In a statement, a Microsoft spokesperson said, "At Microsoft, we are always focused on hiring high performers. We are committed to the personal growth and learning of our employees. When employees do not perform as expected, we take the necessary steps to respond." According to people familiar with the matter, Microsoft is following its rivals in taking a tougher approach to performance management. The cuts are widespread, including in the vital security sector. Microsoft has made several rounds of layoffs in the past two years, and in January 2023, Microsoft announced a plan involving 10,000 employees, as part of the technology industry's widespread cost-cutting measures at the time, which accounted for about 5% of the company's total staff. Since then, Microsoft has continued to make a number of small layoffs across teams, products and divisions. Especially after Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the Xbox division also experienced a degree of layoffs. The confirmed layoffs have attracted widespread attention, and it remains to be seen how the move will affect Microsoft's employees and overall operations. . (from the original home of SMT BBS, reprint please indicate the source: http://bbs.smthome.net/read-htm-tid-516583.html).

Recently, market research agency IDC pointed out in the report that PC shipments in the fourth quarter of 2024 increased by 1.8% year on year, and global shipments reached 68.9 million units. For the full year 2024, PC shipments were 262.7 million units, an annual increase of 1%. Looking forward to 2025, PC manufacturers are facing a number of resistance and support at the same time, making the market outlook unclear, but also make demand planning difficult.​ In addition, the United States and some European countries also performed strongly due to year-end promotions and as enterprises continue to upgrade hardware ahead of the expected end of Windows 10 support in October 2025."​ PC supply chain manufacturers said that in general, with the Christmas shopping season in Europe and the United States, the third quarter is the traditional shipment peak, and as the shopping tide comes to an end, the operation will enter the off-season by the end of the year. However, 2024 is abnormal, and urgent orders have suddenly emerged from the end of November, showing a state of off-season.

Recently, market research agency IDC pointed out in the report that PC shipments in the fourth quarter of 2024 increased by 1.8% year on year, and global shipments reached 68.9 million units. For the full year 2024, PC shipments were 262.7 million units, an annual increase of 1%. Looking forward to 2025, PC manufacturers are facing a number of resistance and support at the same time, making the market outlook unclear, but also make demand planning difficult.​ In addition, the United States and some European countries also performed strongly due to year-end promotions and as enterprises continue to upgrade hardware ahead of the expected end of Windows 10 support in October 2025."​ PC supply chain manufacturers said that in general, with the Christmas shopping season in Europe and the United States, the third quarter is the traditional shipment peak, and as the shopping tide comes to an end, the operation will enter the off-season by the end of the year. However, 2024 is abnormal, and urgent orders have suddenly emerged from the end of November, showing a state of off-season.

Japanese electronics group Kyocera will consider divesting businesses with limited growth potential with total sales of about 200 billion yen ($1.3 billion) to streamline its portfolio amid sluggish demand for auto electronics parts and other products. "We are positioning those businesses that are not expected to grow as non-core businesses and hope to sell them in the fiscal year ending March 2026," said Hideo Tanimoto, president. He did not name specific candidates, but Kyocera expects to gradually sell businesses that are difficult to increase profitability on their own. Kyocera expects its consolidated net profit for the year to March to fall 30 per cent to Y71bn, its third straight year of decline, due to poor performance in its automotive capacitors and semiconductor packaging businesses. In October, the company announced plans to split its business into core and non-core businesses that are expected to grow, and to exit some non-core businesses. "We are focusing on profit, not sales, which will be equivalent to 10 per cent of total sales," Mr Tanimoto said. Kyocera's strength lies in its management style, known as "amoeba management," in which a small unit of about 10 people is responsible for the profitability of each business. Kyocera, which began as a producer of ceramic parts, has diversified into 15 sectors, including electronic parts, communications equipment, medical equipment, cutting and power tools, and multi-function printers. Some of these businesses have struggled to turn a profit in recent years because of competition from China and elsewhere. The company will continue to invest in growth areas. The company will spend 68 billion yen to build a factory in Nagasaki Prefecture to produce components for semiconductor-related applications. "Every business area has needed a lot of investment in recent years," Tanimoto said. "Unless we focus on investing in specific areas rather than trying to cover everything, we're not going to win." Kyocera has also decided to sell a third of its stake in Japanese telecom operator KDDI over the next five years, in which it holds about 16 percent as the largest shareholder. Kyocera Group is expected to gain a market value of about 500 billion yen and plans to invest in core businesses and large-scale mergers and acquisitions. Kyocera was founded in 1959, the company's business is mainly based on precision ceramic technology, radiation development of a number of industrial chains, divided into information and communication market, automotive market, energy conservation and environmental protection market and health care market, four markets, to provide target customers with valuable products and services. Electronic components is one of the main businesses of Kyocera, which provides miniaturized, large-volume, high-performance multi-layer chip ceramic capacitors (MLCC) with superb dielectric ceramic processing and manufacturing technology. With a rich product lineup, it is widely used in wireless communication terminals such as smart phones and tablet computers, digital equipment such as liquid crystal displays, industrial and vehicle equipment. The MLCC market is undergoing structural change. Japanese companies such as Murata, Suntrap and TDK have a high share, but Samsung Electric (the electronic components arm of the South Korean group) and China's Samsung Electronics are gaining market share. Kyocera's other main business is core components - precision ceramic components, automotive parts, medical devices, jewelry and other products. Kyocera, with its rich material technology, processing technology and innovative design technology as the core, provides highly reliable ceramic packages and substrates for a wide range of products such as small components such as smartphones, optical fiber communication components, and leds for automotive headlights. With the rapid development of information and communication technology and the popularization of the Internet, the high performance and multi-function of electronic equipment have made rapid development. Kyocera supports the development of electronic devices through organic packaging and printed circuit boards. According to Kyocera's second quarter results report (fiscal year ending March 2025), the global economy is growing slowly under the influence of falling inflation rates in various countries. The market related to Kyocera's semiconductor business and information and communication business, mainly for AI-related demand has increased, but the overall has not yet achieved a full recovery. At the same time, affected by the downturn in parts orders, the operation rate of production equipment declined, labor costs increased, and performance profits declined. In addition, the report mentioned that the market weakness and market share decline in the early MLCC, as well as the downturn in the vehicle market, the impact of the decline in the operating rate of the new plant in Thailand is greater, and the profitability of the KAVX Group has declined significantly. Kyocera will focus on developing new products for high-end semiconductors and expanding its business for special uses in Europe and the United States in order to strengthen the MLCC business, which is expected to have high growth, and the titanium capacitor business, which has a high market share. At the same time, it will also study exiting non-core businesses and products, and for the growth of the electronic components business, Kyocera believes that implementing strategic mergers and acquisitions to expand market share and improve profitability is crucial.