Korea: Paradigm of thinner, smaller mobile station connectors

The competency of mobile station connector manufacturers depends on how fast they can meet the requirements of mobile station manufacturers. In Korea, the connector segment is transforming into a technologicallydriven industry.



Today, slim mobile phones with thinner and simpler designs are very popular in Korea. This trend has affected the designs of all handset models ranging from low-end mobile phones to high-end ones such as camera phones, MP3 phones, and DMB phones.



Dong-woong Ju, senior manager of the electro-component division at LS Cable, said, "In Korea's mobile station market, it is expected that the share of slim phones will increase from 20 percent in 2006 to 50 percent this year." In effect, local manufacturers of connectors are actively working on the development and supply of connectors that have high development flexibility in line with the miniaturization of parts.The 2mm multimedia interface (MMI) connector, which is shorter by 1mm than the traditional 24-pin external I/O connector, will answer the need for slimmer and smaller mobile station connectors.



NEW MMI COMING SOON

According to Chan-joo Lee, a full-time researcher of the Test Authentication Laboratory at the Telecommunications Technology Association (TTA), the external I/O connectors of Korean mobile phones have been standardized to have 24 pins by the Ministry of Information and Communication. But as mobile station manufacturers such as Samsung and LG are releasing more and more slim phones that use external I/O connectors of 18 or 20 pins, it is clear that a new standard must be established soon. Moreover, earphone jacks and speaker connectors of 10, 14, or 16 pins are increasingly being used today.



Mobile station manufacturers, service providers, and connector manufacturers are currently working on the 20-pin MMI standard.



"Standardization is important in the mobile communications industry," said Lee. "The final connector design, which is 20 pins, has been determined. Through discussion, design issues will be resolved, changes will be ratified, and the standard will be finalized by the first half of this year."



LS Cable's Ju said, "Since MMIs are smaller than the normal external I/O connectors, they can be mounted into any part of the mobile station. These connectors are also cheaper, thereby reducing costs for manufacturing mobile stations. On the other hand, smaller MMIs are not compatible with old connectors."







B2B CONNECTOR

Meanwhile, Korean connector manufacturers have difficulties in breaking into the market of B2B connectors for mobile stations. Kyocera and Matsushita, both Japanese parts manufacturers, are the global leaders in the B2B connector market.



"The 0.4mm and 1.0H are mainly used in the B2B connector market," said Ju. LS Cable is one company that has partly succeeded in the localization of B2B connectors, and is now developing 0.35mm B2B connectors in order to rapidly meet the requirements of the market.