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Foxconn increases compensation to family of worker who committed suicide

by Donald Melanson posted Jul 28th 2009 @ 1:21PM

Foxconn hasn't exactly been helping itself much lately in the sad case of an employee of the company who committed suicide after apparently misplacing an iPhone prototype, with it first noting that the worker had a history of misplacing such prototypes, and then going on to offer his family a rather meager compensation of $44,000 and a free Apple laptop. It now looks to be trying to improve things somewhat, however, with a Foxconn official saying that the company has now agreed to pay Sun Danyong's parents 360,000 yuan (or about $52,600) in compensation up front, plus an additional 30,000 yuan (or $4,385) every year thereafter. Of course, that official is speaking on the condition of anonymity, so things could still well change, and it goes without saying that this likely won't be the last we hear of this story.

Foxconn claims employee who committed suicide had history of misplacing prototypes, does nothing for its case

by Laura June posted Jul 27th 2009 @ 12:26PM

This is one story that only gets more bizarre with each passing day. The 25-year-old Foxconn employee who committed suicide this month, apparently after one of the iPhone prototypes he was responsible for went missing, is now reported to have misplaced other prototypes previous to this instance. According to Foxconn (who spoke with the New York Times), his employer and the company charged with manufacturing all of Apple's handsets, Sun Danyong had had products go missing "several times," but that he had gotten them back. Foxconn itself is the subject of some mystery in all this, after a security officer connected to the company was suspended and turned over to the Chinese government -- apparently in connection with the case. Sun Danyong was reportedly interrogated and possibly beaten after the prototype went missing, though Foxconn and those connected with the company have denied this. Foxconn has confirmed that Sun Danyong's family was paid roughly $44,000 and given an Apple laptop as compensation for his death.

Security official suspended, turned over to authorities in apparent connection to Foxconn employee's suicide

by Ross Miller posted Jul 22nd 2009 @ 10:41PM

We suspect there's more than a few chapters left in the story of 25-year old Foxconn factory worker who died in an apparent suicide this month, following the disappearance of a prototype next-generation iPhone. The latest newsbit, this time care of Bloomberg, is that a security official for Hon Hai, a company with 72 percent stake in Foxconn, has been suspended and turned over to Chinese government authorities, with the suspicion / implication here that there's a direct correlation between this and the suicide. Though unconfirmed at this point, reports circulating say the worker had been harassed by company security prior to his death. Yahoo! Tech has all those details, and the official investigation is ongoing. We'd like to say there'll be conclusive answers in this case sometime in the near future, but we're not getting our hopes up.

Read - Hon Hai Suspends Official After iPhone Worker Suicide
Read - China suicide puts spotlight on secretive Apple culture

Apple confirms and expresses sadness over death of Chinese iPhone prototype handler

by Ross Miller posted Jul 21st 2009 @ 11:23PM

Reports have circulated the internet that a 25-year old worker at Chinese manufacturer Foxconn, which produces all the iPhone models for Apple, committed suicide last week following revelation that a fourth-generation iPhone prototype, one of the 16 iPhones he was responsible for, had gone missing. Some stories circulating have described illegal searches of the man's apartment and interrogation involving physical abuse by other Foxconn employees. While not confirming the case being a suicide or the cause being the disappearing device, a spokesperson for the Cupertino-based company did release a statement corroborating the news of his death, saying that it is "saddened by the tragic loss of this young employee, and we are awaiting results of the investigations into his death. We require our suppliers to treat all workers with dignity and respect." The status of the missing iPhone prototype, which may or may not have been one that earlier this month found itself on eBay given the timeframe (although a 3GS model and not "fourth generation") remains unknown. Our hearts go out to all involved.

Read - Statement form Apple
Read - iPhone prototype goes missing; Chinese worker investigated, commits suicide

WiFi-less iPhones roll off assembly line -- and into Chinese pockets?

by Darren Murph posted Jul 15th 2009 @ 5:24PM

Word from the land of Yao is that Foxconn has begun mass production of a 3G-enabled iPhone 3GS-looking device that lacks WiFi functionality, though it's being suggested that these may actually lack a WiFi module altogether as opposed to the software lock we'd heard about earlier. The phone (read: iPhone) in question is said to be the same as the one Apple recently sent to the China Telecommunication Technology Labs for testing, which points to the handset making its long-awaited Chinese debut in the near future. Of course, rumors of this happening have been surging and receding for years now, and even these "undisclosed sources" provide no insight as to which carrier will scoop the prized contract. The great will they or won't they discussions continue, though if these things are actually being produced, it means one of two things: the world's most populated nation is about to get its iPhone fix, or the world at large is about to receive another stash of iPhone KIRFs.

[Via 9to5 Mac]

Orange getting in on Foxconn-sourced Android phones from Sony Ericsson?

by Chris Ziegler posted Apr 23rd 2009 @ 10:27AM

You might recall that Orange was already rumored to be on board for some Android action from Sony Ericsson this year, and a new report out of the always-accurate DigiTimes (we kid, we kid) would certainly seem to corroborate that. Specifically, the publication says that Sony Ericsson is eyeing Foxconn to produce its Android sets, which is convenient considering that the company was recently rumored to be moving away from HTC for its WinMo devices -- and in light of that, it's entirely plausible that Foxconn could be landing a whole bunch of contracts from these guys. The rumor goes on to say that Orange expects to jointly launch an Android device (or devices, plural) with Sony Ericsson in time for the holidays this year, and if the Idou is anything to go by, we're interested to see what sort of hardware they can pump out with this deal.

[Via Unwired View]

Quanta wins order for 2nd iPhone?

by Thomas Ricker posted May 29th 2007 @ 10:48AM

Ready for some good ol' rumor and speculation related to the iPhone? Sure, after all, we're still a few weeks away from the most optimistic of launch dates. Well, try this one on. A second iPhone manufacturer has been added to the mix. Namely, Apple fave Quanta Computer are rumored to be joining Foxconn (Hon Hai) in the development of the uber phone after winning the contract to deliver 5 million units starting in September. Digitimes, citing a report in the Chinese-language Commercial Times, says that "The iPhone produced by Foxconn is designated for the US market, and those manufactured by Quanta will be similar in function to those from Foxconn but with a different outer design to fit different markets, the paper quoted sources at Taiwan-based component makers as saying." The story was also carried by Taiwan's other leading financial paper, the Economic Daily News for what it's worth. Quanta has issued a response to the rumor on their English language site stating, "Quanta and Apple are building a tighter than ever relationships. Quanta not only manufactures NB and iPod for Apple, but also may have receive the order to make the second generation of the Apple iPhone. iPhone is a smartphone based mobile, and the second generation model shipment is expected in September 2007 with forecast of 5 million units in 2008." What to make of this? Well, the believers amongst you will of course interpret this to mean a 3G iPhone is on the way -- after all, Apple would be testing European patience by delivering a 3G-less phone to the continent in Q4 as originally announced. But that's just speculation on top of rumor which makes an ass out of you and me. Er, or something like that.

Read -- DigiTimes
Read -- Quanta response

Hon Hai cops to iPhone contract

by Paul Miller posted Nov 15th 2006 @ 10:07AM

It looks like a certain little Taiwanese manufacturer is going to get a stern talking to pretty soon from our pal Stevie J. Just last month, Han Hai (aka Foxconn) spilled the beans in regards to a 15-inch MacBook, and while of course nothing has been confirmed by the suits at Apple, that rumor has been reiterated by this juicy new iPhone story. Apparently Hon Hai has now secured a contract with Apple to manufacture 12 million mobile handsets with music player functionality, sez the Commercial Times. The phone (which sounds like an iPhone if we ever heard of one) is purportedly set to launch in the first half of next year, giving rise to hopes that Apple will announce the handset at Macworld Expo in January. As for the MacBook,contrary to the May 2007 ship date we heard for the 15-inch MacBooks earlier, Hon Hai could be delivering these things as early as next month.

[Thanks, Dave Z.]