NVIDIA today announced that it expects revenue for the
fourth quarter ending Jan. 29, 2012, to be lower than
the company's previous outlook, saying it has been hit
by a shortage of hard drives.
Revenue is now expected to be $950 million, plus or
minus 1 percent, compared with original expectations
of $1,066 million, plus or minus 2 percent, provided
on Nov. 10, 2011.
Nvidia said that the global disk-drive shortage caused
by the flooding in Thailand had more impact on the
mainstream GPU segment than anticipated. Shipments by
some PC OEMs were reduced. And the higher prices of
disk-drives constrained some PC OEMs' ability to
include a GPU in their systems.
Additionally, Nvidia's Tegra 2 mobile business
declined more rapidly than expected, ahead of devices
based on the Tegra 3 processor ramping into production
in the first quarter of calendar-year 2012.
Intel and AMD have also warned that the shortage,
expected to last through the first half of 2012, would
hurt their sales.
Western Digital said on Monday it expects to recover
to 60 percent normal production in the current
quarter, 80 percent in the June quarter and be back to
normal by the start of the September quarter.