Lite-On IT recently raised its OEM quotation for half-height (H/H) combo drives by 3%-5% to US$35-40, according to Michael Gong, GM of the company’s optical disc drive business unit.

Demand for H/H combo drives has risen as the retail price difference between combo drives and CD-RW drives has fallen to US$10-15, Gong indicated. However, this has resulted in a shortage of pick-up heads produced by Japan-based Sankyo, which is why Lite-On IT is increasing its OEM price, Gong added.

Hitachi-LG Data Storage (HLDS), Toshiba-Samsung Storage Technology (TSST) and Lite-On IT are the world’s top three makers of H/H combo drives. HLDS and Lite-On IT combo drives feature Sankyo pick-up heads, Gong said.

Lite-On IT has been forced to cut its production 10%-15%, or 100,000 H/H combo drives per month, due to the short supply of pick-up heads, according to Gong. The earliest the tight supply will ease is in November, when Sankyo begins using new capacity, Gong noted.

From DigiTimes