Chip shortages lead to more counterfeit chips and devices

Enlarge / This pair of FT232RL USB to serial UARTs looks quite similar-but the one on the right is a counterfeit based on a mask-programmable microcontroller and only works with older drivers. (credit: Zeptobars)

Beginning with the first Wuhan quarantine in January 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world from both sides of the law of supply and demand. Independent Distributors of Electronics Association (IDEA) founder Steve Calabria believes this two-fisted squeeze will spawn a surge in counterfeit electronics, with consequences for longevity and reliability of equipment built with substandard components.

Supply, demand, and counterfeit

Pandemic lockdowns in industrial cities have pinched supply of both finished goods and raw materials, while demand for electronic products has skyrocketed due to both the need for remote work/school gear and simple boredom from people unable to travel, dine out, and party in the ways they're accustomed to.

The immediate impact of this shortage is obvious and already well-reported-for example, it's so difficult to buy a graphics card right now that manufacturer MSI is bringing back the 2014-era Nvidia GT 730. The GT 730 is, frankly, garbage-it offers a bit more than half the performance of Intel's UHD integrated graphics and less than a fifth the performance of 2015's GTX 950. But it works-and for the moment, that's the most important thing to be said about it.

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