Intel Brings Out Multifunction Chips In Bid to Diversify
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Intel Corp. Wednesday unveiled the first fruits of a new effort to make multifunction chips, a strategy that could accelerate a longtime goal to diversify beyond computers.
The company said products it is developing -- called SoCs, for systems on a chip -- can be used in an array of devices, including car entertainment and information systems, TV set-top boxes, and industrial robots, as well as security and communications hardware.
I’ll be surprised if Intel pulls this market move off. First, the vast majority of gizmos use the ARM architecture.
Example - your startup company wants to design a new gizmo. You have the choice of using X86 or ARM. From my quick read of you either use one of the “off-the-shelf” X86 designs, and “off-the-shelf” ARM design, or you role your own using the ARM as the basis of the design.
There has always been an option of using X86 for off-the-shelf - but that was normally something from AMD or VIA. ARM has been the hands-down winner in this arena for years.
As for the roll your own option - which is how I make a living. The usual situation is that nothing off-the-shelf does the job required OR the customer has some value-add hardware that they want as part of the SOC. If past records are to be used as a metric. The one other time Intel tried to play in this arena they were marvelously inept and sluggish.
This is why I’m not worried about them taking my job away anytime soon.