February 27, 2026

Surging Memory Costs Will Reduce Global PC & Smartphone Shipments in 2026 Surging memory prices will slash 2026 PC shipments by 10.4% and smartphones by 8.4%, says Gartner. A 130% jump in DRAM and SSD costs will lift device prices up to 17%, kill sub-$500 PCs by 2028, and push buyers to delay upgrades, boosting security risks. Gartner

Sponsor Buy SMT Dispensing Needles Online EZ-FLO needles are machined from stainless steel with smoother internal profile for improved material flow. Chamfered needle tip is finely ground for better release. Buy online. DL Technology

VIEWPOINT 2026: Yassir Djebli, Sales and Support Engineer, DEN-ON INSTRUMENTS CO.,LTD In 2026, we will be launching two important technology advancements. The first is a new member of our RD-500V rework soldering system family, designed to make alignment easier and more precise than ever before. Instead of manually aligning SMD components, alignment is now Automatic , with all axes motorized. ... DEN-ON INSTRUMENTS CO.,LTD

Innovative Power Module Assembly Solutions Power module production utilizes many different technologies. When industry leaders from these different fields join efforts on the design of these lines, higher efficiency and yields are the result. Technical Paper

Rare earth shortages worsen in US aerospace, chips despite trade truce, sources say Suppliers to US aerospace and chipmakers are rationing rare earths like yttrium and scandium amid ongoing Chinese export curbs, disrupting coatings and 5G chip materials. As Donald Trump prepares to meet Xi Jinping, companies warn shortages & soaring prices threaten supply chains. Taipei Times

Sponsor Copper Stud & CTE Nano Tech Underfill AIT's proven flip-chip and BGA multi-level underfills offer both 18 ppm/°C copper CTE matching fine-pitch & nano-pitch with 10 µm & 0.3 µm respective cut-off particles. AI Technology, Inc.

Here's What 15 Years of Lunches with Steve Jobs Taught One Apple Insider Steve Jobs built a trillion-dollar giant by relentlessly chasing curiosity, asking bold questions and exploring ideas without clear answers. His drive to learn and experiment powered innovation and transformed Apple Inc. into a global tech powerhouse. Entrepreneur

Seeking Alternatives to Solvent Cleaning We are using a mix of trichloroethylene and IPA for cleaning in the ratio of 10 to 90. We are looking to eliminate the use of trichloroethylene. Board Talk

Technical Papers ■ The Drawbacks of Internal Recycling Systems for Solder Dross ■ Engineering ESD-Safe PCB Assembly for High-Reliability IoT and Industrial Electronics ■ The Analysis of Variance: Drawing Conclusions from Data That Are Correct, Unambiguous, and Defensible ■ PCB Rework Evolves, With X-ray a Constant Support ■ How pH Cleaning Agents Affect Production Performance ■ A Universal AI-Powered Segmentation Model for PCBA & Semiconductor ■ RAIG Minimizes Corrosion, Allows Higher Gold on ENEPIG ■ High Reliability Lead-Free Solder Paste with Rosin and Anti-Crack Resin ■ Understanding Solder Dross: Causes and Control Strategies ■ Optimizing BGA Rework: Challenges, Techniques and Quality Control MORE TECHNICAL PAPERS

Sponsor Capital Expenses Significantly Reduced by Eliminating Dispensed Adhesives and Underfills Learn how you can potentially save $300K-$900K in capital expense with our PLACE-N-BOND Underfilms. Click here. Alltemated Inc.

Future-Proofing the Electronics Workforce Through the Global Electronics Association’s Emerging Engineer Program Launched in 2016, the Global Electronics Association's Emerging Engineer Program combats the electronics skills gap by pairing new engineers with IPC mentors. It strengthens standards expertise, boosts product quality, and preserves critical knowledge as veterans leave. Global Electronics Association

Trump calls on Big Tech to supply their own electricity for AI data centers President Donald Trump urged tech giants including Amazon, Alphabet and Microsoft to build or fund power plants, unveiling a "Ratepayer Protection Pledge" to curb AI-driven electricity hikes amid protests over expanding data centers and strained grids. TechSpot

An Investigation in Rinse Water Sustainability This paper investigates options for improving sustainability in Class II and III manufacturing environments by studying options for reusing and/or recycling rinse water. Technical Paper

Sponsor Inline Automatic X-Ray Inspection: TruView™ Verus TruView™ Verus is a high-resolution inline AXI system offering advanced 2D, 2.5D, and 3D imaging to detect defects in electronic assemblies with exceptional accuracy and speed. Creative Electron

The humble PDF is becoming a problem for AI Thirty years after Adobe launched the PDF, AI systems are straining under its rigid layouts. Parsing errors, security risks, and structural limits push startups and tech giants to rethink document tools, even as billions of PDFs still dominate global paperwork. TechSpot

New Path to Battery-Grade Lithium Uses Electrochemistry Mangrove Lithium is launching a 2026 demo plant to convert lithium feedstocks into battery-grade lithium hydroxide using electricity, water, and oxygen. Its electrochemical process cuts major waste, tackles global refining bottlenecks, and slashes supply-chain emissions. IEEE Spectrum

New Interconnection for High Temperature Application: HotPowCon (HPC) Interconnection technology is capable for resistant joints for SMT components, bigger dies, like MOSFETs or IGBTs and even large area substrates, like baseplate or heat sinks. Technical Paper

Sponsor 3 Ways to Increase Plasma Uniformity Process temperature is the most important parameter in the plasma process. Process temperature has primary control over etch rate and has a secondary effect on etch uniformity. Read more. Plasma Etch

Wall Street priced an AI apocalypse in software, but Jim Cramer says reality is less dire CNBC's Jim Cramer said software firms will adapt and survive AI disruption, dismissing doomsday forecasts sparked by Citrini Research. He argued markets overreacted and highlighted strong earnings from Nvidia as proof that AI is driving economic growth, not destruction. CNBC

How Stupid Would It Be to Put Data Centers in Space? Top tech leaders including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Jensen Huang, Sam Altman and Sundar Pichai are backing orbital AI data centers. Analyst Andrew McCalip estimates a 1-gigawatt satellite network would cost $51 billion—about triple comparable Earth-based facilities. IEEE Spectrum

Sponsor Circuitnet Advertising Delivers Results! Introduce your technology, new products or services in our daily e-mail newsletter & website to see how a digital advertising campaign can deliver results. Reach over 200,000 professionals. Circuitnet LLC

Google ships the AI assistant Apple promised but hasn't delivered Google is rolling out agentic Gemini features in beta on Pixel 10 and Samsung Galaxy S26 phones, enabling the assistant to understand context and complete multi-app tasks like food orders and ride bookings, intensifying competition with Apple in mobile AI. TechSpot

NSOP Reduction for QFN RFIC Packages NSOP failures are costly as the entire device is rejected if there is one such failure on any bond pad. The paper presents some of the failure modes. Technical Paper

Nvidia still hasn't sold its U.S.-approved China AI chips — and it's worried local AI rivals could take over Nvidia has yet to revive China sales despite eased U.S. export curbs, generating no revenue from approved H200 shipments and facing uncertainty over imports. The chipmaker warns that rising Chinese AI rivals, boosted by IPOs, threaten its long-term dominance. CNBC

How to Thrive as a Remote Worker A developer's first remote job spiraled into burnout as he worked 12-hour days, avoided speaking up, and felt invisible. He later realized remote work demands proactive communication and visibility, since managers and teammates cannot see effort or struggles without clear signals. IEEE Spectrum

Sponsor Affordable Profiling Excellence Four channels of precision data capture from the most trusted name in thermal profiling. New and improved V-M.O.L.E.™ 2 is the ideal solution for budget-conscious electronics pros. Learn more here. ECD

New Era of On-device AI Driven by High-speed UFS 5.0 Storage AI smartphones are surging as brands embed large language models for powerful on-device generative features. Kioxia says next-generation UFS 5.0 storage will double transfer speeds, enabling larger LLMs, faster data loading, and significantly stronger on-device AI performance. EE Times