semiconductor

Nvidia CEO: People buying tablets instead of cheap PCs

Tablets really are replacing PCs now that the latest version of Windows has launched, graphics- and mobile-chip maker Nvidia said.

But at least right now, Nvidia's mobile business isn't big enough to offset the less-than-merry computer market this holiday season.

It's not exactly shocking that tablets have been eating into sales of PCs. Computer makers have noted the trend, and so have Nvidia chip rivals Intel and Advanced Micro Devices.

But what's interesting is that Nvidia says consumers now realize that a "great tablet is better than a cheap PC." That could signal a … Read more

What would happen if Moore's Law did fizzle?

First of all, don't panic.

If Moore's Law came to an end and computers stopped getting steadily faster, plenty of companies would suffer. But an end likely would come with lots of warning, lots of measures to cushion the blow, and lots of continued development even if transistors stopped shrinking.

The hardest hit would be companies dependent on consumers replacing their electronics every few years and tech companies such as Google whose long-term plans hinge on faster computers, cheaper storage, and better bandwidth. And the continuing miniaturization of computers -- mainframes to minicomputers to PCs to smartphones -- … Read more

On the Moore's Law hot seat: Intel's Mike Mayberry (Q&A)

Mike Mayberry, perhaps more than anyone, is the guy who keeps Moore's Law ticking.

As the vice president who leads Intel's research team, he bears responsibility for making sure his employer can cram ever more electronic circuitry onto computer chips. Intel co-founder Gordon Moore 47 years ago observed the pace at which microchips' transistor count doubled, and Mayberry is in charge of keeping that legacy intact.

A lot rests on Moore's Law, which in a 1975 update to Moore's original 1965 paper predicted that the number of transistors will double every two years. That means a … Read more

Moore's Law: The rule that really matters in tech

Year in, year out, Intel executive Mike Mayberry hears the same doomsday prediction: Moore's Law is going to run out of steam. Sometimes he even hears it from his own co-workers.

But Moore's Law, named after Intel co-founder Gordon Moore, who 47 years ago predicted a steady, two-year cadence of chip improvements, keeps defying the pessimists because a brigade of materials scientists like Mayberry continue to find ways of stretching today's silicon transistor technology even as they dig into alternatives. (Such as, for instance, super-thin sheets of carbon graphene.)

Oh, and don't forget the money that'… Read more

Fate of Silicon Valley bleak, according to silicon CEOs

Chief executives from Intel and Cypress Semiconductor say Silicon Valley is in a bad state.

Literally. The basic problem is California, according to recent comments from Intel CEO Paul Otellini and Cypress CEO T.J. Rogers.

Speaking at the Intel Capital Global Summit on Wednesday, Otellini said Intel has not added a job in California in at least a decade, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

He characterized California's future as bleak for businesses. "We're so close to screwing it up, it's pathetic...I worry that we have to hit the abyss before … Read more

iPhone 5 will drive GDP, chip growth, analysts predict

Just how big is the expected release this Wednesday of the iPhone 5? How about big enough to show up in U.S. GDP growth and account for a sizable chunk of global chip revenues.

Adds to U.S GDP: Let's start with the U.S. economy. "We believe the release of iPhone 5 could potentially add between 1/4 to 1/2 percent-point to fourth quarter annualized [gross domestic product] growth," said JP Morgan in a research note today.

The note continued. "Our equity analysts believe around 8 million iPhone 5's will be sold … Read more

Apple is the biggest chip buyer -- and getting bigger

PARIS -- Apple is the biggest buyer of microprocessors today -- and it's getting bigger.

The semiconductor industry produces all kinds of chips for memory, running software, communicating over networks, and more. And Apple, by virtue of its booming iPhone and iPad business, is a voracious consumer, said Dale Ford, head of IHS iSuppli's electronics and semiconductor research business. Samsung is in second place, and also growing fast, he added, speaking at the analyst firm's Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) Summit here.

In 2009, Apple was one of the herd, spending about $9 billion on semiconductors. This … Read more

Intel etches highest market share in a decade

Intel retained its hefty grip on the chip market last year with healthy revenues and a record market share.

Ending 2011 as the top chip supplier, Intel carved out 15.6 percent of the market, a gain of 2.5 points from 2010, research firm IHS said today.

The latest figure proved to the highest at least since 2001 when the company took home a 13.9 percent share. Over the last five years, Intel's share has varied from 11.9 percent to 13.9 percent.

Strong sales growth and a major acquisition both contributed to the surge in … Read more

Apple tips chip spending scales in favor of wireless

The popularity of Apple's iPad and iPhone is driving the shift of chip spending to wireless from computers, according to IHS-iSuppli.

Global spending by the world's top device makers on chips for wireless products amounted to $58.6 billion in 2011, up 14.5 percent from $51.2 billion in 2010, according to IHS iSuppli. As a result, spending for computers was topped by wireless, which became the world's largest semiconductor spending segment for device makers--aka, OEMs or original equipment manufacturers--in 2011.

Though this is not the first time wireless spending has exceeded that of computer-related spending (… Read more