Some components will increasingly be hard to get in the coming months, they said, and that may affect product deliveries in a number of potentially high-growth markets. Their report, "Shortages Ahead for Power Management Components," cites rising demand for certain components in high-profit markets such as PCs and handhelds. Those segments will command more attention at wafer foundries and pull wafer starts away from other less-profitable areas, declares iSuppli director John Trice. Thus, securing such power-management components as analog ICs and power MOSFETs in particular may be problematic.

At its core, I find the prospect of any power-management device shortage hard to accept. Supply and demand, of course, will always be a factor. But either way one looks at it, power management is part and parcel of the system today. Support for those systems isn't a choice, but a requirement. That is, it's no accident that wafer facilities strive for more universal production setups. It's one reason I think power MOSFET technology has made such rapid strides in the last year, and why real products arrive en masse. Analog ICs advanced much the same way.

The most convincing indicator, though, is that most semiconductor suppliers I talk to indicate a concrete commitment to the area, many setting up power-management divisions. They've placed viable road maps in motion. Indeed, products specifically addressing power management are being released in such numbers to the point where the subject warrants consideration as a separate product section in our book.

On the other hand, forewarned is forearmed. That's why iSuppli's report might well be worth a look-see. My job is to analyze as well as chronicle. iSuppli's job is knowing the distribution business so that designers and OEMs can plan ahead, and it's part of my business to let you know what the experts are saying so you'll be prepared.