Following shortage of major graphics cards and processors, the next piece of important hardware to run into problems is routers, and not just for every PC user, but every laptop, tablet, and smartphone owner. Without new generation routers, smart gadgets and computers of all ilk can't enjoy the new, highest speeds of internet browsing and network speed — especially wirelessly.
The news comes straight from the IPS's mouth, with sources within that industry telling Bloomberg that there are router order delays of up to 60 weeks. Not days, weeks. If major companies are facing those delays, it won't be long until those stick issues bleed through to retailers. If you need a new router in the next year and a half, buy one now. Those shortages have yet to hit consumers retailers, with even popular new-generation models supporting Wi-Fi 6 still readily available, as well as popular mesh router solutions, and more traditional Wi-Fi 5 models.
That's not to say it won't happen though. Indeed it may well be that like GPUs and CPUs, stock issues early on lead to supply issues later. If demand picks up, though, either because people become aware of the supply problems or because a new generation of consoles, smartphones, and other devices want to get on board with Wi-Fi 6, we could see major shortages at retail soon too.
Like most industries facing chip shortage concerns, a major reason for it with routers is down to the pandemic and that it lead to shutdowns at major fabricators and at other key points in the supply chain.
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