May 21 - 5:15pm EDT   Apple has become the focus of a conflict over worker rights in Taiwan, local reporters say. Labor groups today carried banners and microphones outside of Apple's Taipei office, hoping to put indirect pressure on Wintek, a major supplier of flat-panel displays. The latter is accused of firing over 600 workers in December without warning, moreover cutting salaries, and forcing some of its people to work unpaid overtime in order to fulfill rush orders. [full story]

December 15 - 10:35am EST   (Updated with Taiwan information) Apple is now listing which countries and carriers around the world are carrying unlocked versions of the iPhone, the company's website reveals. Recently added to the support page for activating an iPhone 3G is a "Carrier offers authorized unlocking" column, with a simple checkmark for each company. The page also lists whether or not a carrier offers a locked phone, which, while eliminating freedom, may reduce the cost of the hardware and/or monthly fees. [full story]

December 15 - 9:40am EST   Buyers of the Taiwanese iPhone will find it unlocked, reports say. Although the phone's official carrier in the country -- Chunghwa Telecom -- has in the past insisted that the phone would only work on its network, in practice, the new iPhone will accept SIM cards from other carriers' networks without any hardware or software hacks. The only tradeoff, users say, is that Chunghwa's Hami services become inaccessible. [full story]

November 21 - 10:35am EST   A new service package announced for the Taiwanese iPhone may suggest that Apple is allowing more freedom when it comes to carrier personalization. Local carrier Chunghwa Telecom has revealed the existence of Hami, a set of free services intended specifically for iPhone owners. People will have access to 11 services in total, including special news, weather and stock market trackers, as well as audio, video and images custom-produced solely for Hami. It is unclear whether Hami will be delivered via the web or as a custom app download. [full story]

November 17 - 10:25am EST   The iPhone should launch in Taiwan sometime next month, carrier Chunghwa Telecom has announced. The company says it should be the phone's exclusive carrier on the island for the foreseeable future, and has set a rough timeframe of December 2008. No subscription plans have been announced, nor has Chunghwa provided an estimate of phone prices. The carrier will however have to compete with gray-market phones from New Zealand, Hong Kong and even the US, which have been selling for the equivalent of $667 or more. [full story]

October 2 - 1:00pm EDT   Apple's newest iPods are unlikely to have much impact in Taiwan, despite the popularity of the products around the world, an industry publication observes. DigiTimes notes that the prices of NAND memory, and LCD screens between 2.8 and 3.5 inches, have allowed local companies such as T.sonic and Ergotech to release extremely cheap 8GB media players, costing between $3,000 and $3,500 NT ($94 and $109 US). Some generic "white-box" players may even cost as little as $2,500 NT, or $78 US. [full story]

April 1 - 11:30am EDT   BenQ on Friday revealed details of its super-slim T60, measuring just over a third of an inch (8.9mm) thick and packing a 2.2-inch 320x240 resolution LCD screen along with a 3.2-megapixel camera. Software includes a caller black list function that screens out user-selected numbers. BenQ is pitching the GSM phone as a high-quality fashion accessory akin to fountain pens and money clips. [full story]

February 22 - 3:30pm EST   A new batch of routers is enroute for Sprint's WiMAX network, reports say. The routers were designed exclusively for Sprint's Xohm service by ZyXEL, and are now said to be shipping out of the latter's home country of Taiwan. The initial number of routers will be limited, say sources for DigiTimes, as Xohm is still very much in a trial period. It is currently available in Baltimore, Chicago and Washington, with broader release only being scheduled for April. [full story]

December 26 - 12:05pm EST   The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) in Taiwan has demonstrated a new invention, one which may potentially extend the useful life of LCD monitors and TVs. An increasing number of displays are using LED backlighting to provide greater brightness and contrast, but the ITRI notes that after 1,000 hours of use, current backlights almost invariably begin dimming. To counter this, the new system monitors the backlight, and makes adjustments as necessary with the goal of preserving color richness. [full story]