The supply problem lies with the side-lit screen. Sharp makes it--and can't ramp up to make enough of them. Sharp itself is not going belly up (at least, not yet), but it's lead bank is in dire straits, along with a dozen other big names in Japanese banking.
You have to ask yourself, however, what kind of dumb firm is Compaq to develop such a blockbuster product and then trust a vulnerable single source for so critical a component. Haven't these guys ever heard of technological risk assessment?
Baldylocks
Slashdot Mirror
The supply problem lies with the side-lit screen. Sharp makes it--and can't ramp up to make enough of them. Sharp itself is not going belly up (at least, not yet), but it's lead bank is in dire straits, along with a dozen other big names in Japanese banking. You have to ask yourself, however, what kind of dumb firm is Compaq to develop such a blockbuster product and then trust a vulnerable single source for so critical a component. Haven't these guys ever heard of technological risk assessment? Baldylocks