Hi wily; I don't think I'm up enough on processes to comment on how AMD is going to ramp up the Athalon. That said, one of my buddies, that I respect a lot, (and who agreed that RMBS was going to be a fiasco) says that AMD always used to have better processes than INTC, but worse architectures. The new AMD chips appear to have better architecture and process.
He says that he thinks they are going to kick (body part). He also is very, very big on VTSS. Both them and AMD are using IBM's copper CMOS, he says, in large volumes. Outside my area of specialty, but I'm inclined to believe it.
The implications would be that Athalon will quickly ramp up to very, very, very high frequencies, with manufacturing in volume. Vitesse is kicking (body part) with its use of that same copper process, in volume for three months or so. Vitesses used to big a GaAs house, but they are replacing those chips with much cheaper copper CMOS parts.
Naturally, I've probably confused most of this, but the cut to the chase is that it is a go. My speculation is that AMD will second source to IBM for royalties, and the combined companies could dominate the PC industry over the next 10 years. BWDIK.
-- Carl |
