mocoNews.net - Apple Cuts iPhone Production Target By 20 Percent; Battery Lawsuit Dropped; Unlocked In Hong Kong

Apple ( NSDQ: AAPL) has cut its 2008 iPhone 3G production target by at least 20 percent to 14 million units, according to estimates by Pacific Crest,ZDNet reports. The firm says the cutback from a previous target of 18 million won't impact Apple's bottom line, but may affect various suppliers. "Supply chain channel decks" are said to be the culprit for the decline that could cut revenue estimates for Skyworks Solutions, Triquint Semiconductor, Linear Technology, On Semiconductor and National Semiconductor. While the cutback is significant, even the most conservative estimates suggest Apple will already hit its 10 million target, or will by the end of the year. Apple likely won't confirm until its next earnings. It might be a matter of setting expectations low, but 18 months ago, few expected a new cellphone manufacturer, even Apple, to reach any market share of this size.

Some other highlights from the report:

-- 8 GB iPhones are seeing the sharpest inventory drawdowns, hinting that smartphone demand is stronger at a lower price point, but Apple could be planning to refresh its lineup with a 16 GB model at $199 and a 32 GB model at $299 soon, putting even more pressure on the handset industry and component suppliers.-- Memory prices are continuing to fall, but the production cutback means Apple wasn't able to clear the large inventory of NAND memory it already owns. That could translate to revenue declines for Sandisk and Micron Technology.

Apple Beats Battery-Life Lawsuit: A lawsuit claiming Apple didn't immediately tell customers about limited battery life for its iPhones has been dismissed in a Chicago federal court,Bloomberg reports. U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly granted Apple's request that the lawsuit be dismissed on the evidence: "Apple disclosed on the outside of the iPhone package that the" battery has "'limited recharge cycles and may eventually need to be replaced by Apple service provider?' Under the circumstances, no reasonable jury could find that deception occurred." The suit was filed in July 2007, soon after the first iPhone launched, in Illinois state court, but Apple had the case moved to federal court.

Unlocked iPhone For Sale In Hong Kong: Apple began offering unlocked iPhones in Hong Kong via its website: $692 for an 8 GB model and $794 for a 16 GB model,InfoWorld reports. In perhaps the biggest shift from Apple yet, although expected, the company says iPhones sold in the region can be "activated with any wireless carrier." In most countries Apple is partnering with carriers to lock down their devices with the carrier it was originally bought for. iPhones have already been for sale in Hong Kong through 3 HK,MacNN reports. It's already assumed that the devices sold in Hong Kong will make their way to China since a stripped-down version without 3G or Wi-Fi is being built for the rest of the country. The iPhone will also begin selling in 29 new countries in Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Latin America, some as early as today.