tsmc

Qualcomm's Q4 shows gap between mobile, PC chipmakers

In case the market needs more evidence of the strength of mobile versus PCs, all it has to do is look at Qualcomm.

The wireless-chip maker, which helped popularize the CDMA technology used in cell phones, today reported quarterly financial results that were better than it had anticipated, and it provided bullish projections for the current period and year.

Its strong results -- which sent shares up about 8 percent in after-hours trading -- contrast pretty sharply with the dismal forecasts from many other semiconductor companies, most notably PC chip giant Intel. Intel last month gave a fairly grim outlook … Read more

Apple rethinking Samsung chip partnership, say sources

Apple has begun the process of lessening its dependency on Samsung for chipmaking, an analyst told CNET.

"Apple is working with TSMC at 20 nanometers," said Gus Richard, a chip analyst at Piper Jaffray, referring to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company's most advanced 20-nanometer (nm) manufacturing process.

Another chip industry source contacted by CNET confirmed this. "The Apple-Samsung relationship has deteriorated to such a poor point that they're just looking to fill contractual obligations, then make a change," said the source, who corroborated the move to TSMC at 20 nanometers.

An Asia-based news report said … Read more

Apple, Qualcomm reportedly tried to buy exclusive TSMC favor

Apple and Qualcomm reportedly tried to secure exclusive access to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. smartphone chips by making separate investment offers in the custom chip maker in excess of $1 billion.

The cash would have assured the investors that production would have been reserved for their products, but both bids were rejected, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. The two companies were trying secure manufacturing resources to satisfy increasing demand for smartphones, a market Bloomberg Industries estimates to be worth $219 billion.

CNET contacted Apple and Qualcomm for comment and will update this report when we learn more.

TSMC, … Read more

Psst! Intel will make ARM chips

Intel will do what many would consider, at the very least, unusual: make the very kind of chip that it has vowed to crush.

That would be ARM, Intel's biggest nemesis.

First a little background. Intel is the world's largest chipmaker because it owns the x86 design that Apple and all of the world's PC makers use for laptops, desktops, and servers.

But Intel's x86 chips must compete mightily these days against ARM, the chip of choice for smartphones and tablets. Those chips are supplied by Nvidia, Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, and Samsung.

So, this is where … Read more

Heads up, Intel: TSMC cranks up ARM chip to 3GHz

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company has ripped a page right out of the Intel playbook.

TSMC announced today that a chip rolling off its advanced 28-nanometer manufacturing process was jacked up to 3.1GHz -- unheard of in the annals of ARM-based mobile system reviews.

Intel, of course, is not a stranger to fast frequencies. Its high-performance Core i desktop processors run well more than 3GHz, and even its higher-end mobile parts are rated close to 3GHz.

But that's unfamiliar territory for ARM, which is known more for power efficiency than raw power.

More specifically, the TSMC chip is a … Read more

Apple has big lead over Intel in mobile chips, analyst says

A chip analyst has written a sobering assessment of Intel's chip prowess vis-a-vis Apple in the mobile device race, an odd underdog position for the largest chipmaker.

In the brave new world of tablets and smartphones, chip competition isn't so much about Moore's Law but rather how the "blocks" of circuits are put together and the nexus with the software that runs on those circuits, Gus Richard, a senior research analyst at securities firm Piper Jaffray, wrote in a research note this week.

More specifically, tablets and smartphones use silicon called system-on-a-chip, or SoC, that … Read more

Apple using Samsung for next iPhone despite patent battles

Apple and Samsung may be battling each other in the courts over patent claims but the two companies are reportedly still working with each other on the technology for the next iPhone.

Samsung will supply the A6 processor slated to appear in the iPhone 5, or whatever Apple dubs its next phone, says The Korea Times. Citing industry sources, the publication reports that Samsung has boosted the production of Apple-designed A6 chips at its plant in Austin, Texas.

"Apple has been in talks with Samsung over shipment of its A6 quad-core mobile processor (AP) chips to be used in … Read more

IBM, Intel group to invest $4.4 billion in chip tech

A group of semiconductor heavyweights led by Intel, IBM, and Globalfoundries will invest $4.4 billion in a New York-based chip R&D hub, New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said today.

The five-year investment will target upstate New York, which is already a major center of chip research and development activity tied to IBM and Globalfoundries. The latter--Advanced Micro Devices' erstwhile chipmaking arm now owned by Abu Dhabi-based ATIC--is in the process of completing a massive manufacturing complex to make 28-nanometer chips in the town of Malta, NY. IBM has had manufacturing and R&D facilities … Read more

Inside the iPhone 5

With anticipation for Apple's iPhone 5 (or whatever branding is ultimately used) extremely high, most of the focus has been, not surprisingly, on design and timing. But what will make the iPhone 5 tick? That's the question I asked a couple of experts.

The upcoming phone is expected to pack Apple's latest and greatest A5 silicon, a Qualcomm 3G chip, and circuits that support a higher-resolution camera.

A5 chip: The Apple A5 houses the main processor--or so-called application processor--that will power the phone. The A5 (technically a system-on-a-chip or SoC) is the same chip that currently powers the iPad 2. The A5 distinguishes itself from the older A4, used in the iPhone 4, by having two processor cores (the A4 has one) and faster graphics circuits. Two cores allow the device--like the iPad 2--to multitask better than a single-core phone.

"It's liable to be the A5," said Will Strauss, president of Forward Concepts, a company that tracks the phone chip market. But Strauss expects the chip to be a variation of the A5 in the iPad 2. "It's a geometric shrink of the A5. The geometries (size of the chip) will be smaller," he said. … Read more