JOIN USApple begins manufacturing iPhone 14 in India
Apple’s latest flagship smartphone, iPhone 14, is being manufactured by Foxconn, the California-based electronic major’s contract manufacturer, at its massive facility in Sriperumbudur near here. The brand new iPhones that come out of the Foxconn factory will be shipped to both domestic and export markets.
The move by Apple Inc comes as a major boost to the ‘Make in India’ programme of the Narendra Modi government which is wooing global electronics giants to set up their shops in the country. Sources said the ‘Made in India’ iPhone 14 will be available at online and offline outlets “very soon.”
“The new iPhone 14 lineup introduces ground-breaking new technologies and important safety capabilities. We’re excited to be manufacturing the iPhone 14 in India.” Apple Inc announced in a terse statement issued on Monday.
iPhone 14 will be shipped out of the Foxconn plant in Sriperumbudur. “Apart from domestic consumption, the iPhone 14 will also be shipped for the export market,” a source in the know said.
With iPhone 14 now being manufactured by Foxconn in Sriperumbudur, Apple now manufactures almost all of its advanced models of iPhones in India, including iPhone SE, iPhone 12, and iPhone 13. Apple began manufacturing iPhones in India in 2017 with iPhone SE at Wistron’s facility.
Three Taiwanese contract manufacturers of Apple – Foxconn, Pegatron, and Wistron – now have production units on the outskirts of Chennai and Bengaluru respectively. The move by Apple to manufacture iPhone 14 in India comes amid reports that the US-based company is planning to shift a significant portion of its operation from China to India.
Foxconn, the largest contract manufacturer of iPhones, expanded its capacity at its facilities in Sriperumbudur after Apple began to focus on India following the outbreak of Covid-19 in China. Another source said Foxconn’s new facility at the Sriperumbudur campus is ready but could not confirm whether it was being used to manufacture iPhone 14.
Sources also said the recent manufacturing expansion builds on several Apple initiatives in India, including a first-of-its-kind App Design and Development Accelerator in Bengaluru and programs with local organisations to support renewable energy training and development for communities.
Foxconn, the Taiwanese electronics manufacturer, had in 2019 pledged an additional investment of Rs 7,000 crore in Tamil Nadu to expand its capacity. The iPhone plant in Sriperumbudur was in the news early this year after it was shut for almost a month due to protests over employees working inside the factory fell ill due to food poisoning.