[S|A] Apple has a fab

[NTMBK]

http://semiaccurate.com/2013/07/12/apple-has-their-own-fab/

I've not read the report- I'm not forking out for a subscription But if the headline is true, this could be interesting.

 

[blackened23]

Well, they certainly have the cash to make it happen. With that being said, what are the ramifications with their TSMC relationship? They've already signed on to have A8 and A9 produced at TSMC.....

 

[TuxDave]

And here I thought the number of process companies would go down over time.

 

[erunion]

Apple is not building a fab. If this is true, they bought someone. But probably not true...

 

[Haserath]

I think they might have an exclusive TSMC fab. They don't have their own foundry.

It makes sense to just use their technology vs. actually R&D process tech going forward.

 

[Hitman928]

Well, the headline is, "has a fab", then the introduction to the article says, "bought into a fab, and not in a trivial way." Make of it what you will. I'm sure there's some truth to it, but Apple buying/building their own fab. . . I think Charlie's trying to get people to pay to see his articles. We'll find out soon enough, spending that amount of money is not exactly something you can hide for long.

 

[PPB]

I vote the "TSMC exclusive fab" theory. Otherwise it makes little sense for apple to build their own fab. It probably is part of the deal they made for the next years.

So now NV/AMD/every other ARM player cept samsung (and some others I cant remember right now) has 1 less fab to count with (probably a 20nm one at that).

 

[FwFred]

I vote the "TSMC exclusive fab" theory. Otherwise it makes little sense for apple to build their own fab. It probably is part of the deal they made for the next years.

+1. Buying exclusive access to a fab is a completely different story than building your own and developing your own process technology. Given Apple's history with exclusive supplier agreements, this seems to be a no brainer.

 

[bullzz]

http://appleinsider.com/articles/13...-into-chip-fab-plans-to-build-its-own-silicon

"tags accompanying the story may reveal Apple's rumored mystery partner: United Microelectronics Corporation"

 

[Vesku]

I vote the "TSMC exclusive fab" theory. Otherwise it makes little sense for apple to build their own fab. It probably is part of the deal they made for the next years.

So now NV/AMD/every other ARM player cept samsung (and some others I cant remember right now) has 1 less fab to count with (probably a 20nm one at that).

I'd bet on this, probably have their own 20nm production lines at TSMC.

 

[Xpage]

i bet they paid for the 20nm fab for TSMC to run to make processors for them.

Also i don't like how S/A went to subscription mode, i have pretty much stopped going there now

 

[Idontcare]

I don't buy it, not for a minute.

But I do get Charlie's motivation for spinning it:

Apple's alleged buy-in to an unnamed chip fabrication plant is not a "trivial" investment, a report published Friday by SemiAccurate claims. The full report remains hidden behind a $1,000-per-year paywall, but tags accompanying the story may reveal Apple's rumored mystery partner: United Microelectronics Corporation.

 

[Idontcare]

Also i don't like how S/A went to subscription mode, i have pretty much stopped going there now

The problem with the subscription model is that Charlie is trying to sell information that is only of value to the people in the industry who already know the information (hopefully no one thinks Charlie's moles only talk to Charlie...).

The only S/A articles those people need to buy are the ones that are fully loaded with Charlie's made up BS, because of course industry folks don't know stuff that is purely made up in the mind of Charlie until they read it...and those folks are smart enough not to pay those kinds of rates for that kind of entertainment.

So who is Charlie really selling his subscription articles to? People who don't know enough to know better than to pay for them, and that is one of the many ways which fool's and their money come to part ways. But can those folks do anything with the info, even when it is correct, beyond feeling like they learned something before it is announced officially?

I doubt it. I sure hope people aren't blindly thinking they can use the info as the basis for stock investments and so on

 

[ShintaiDK]

Who in their right mind would even visit SA, and even worse to pay the guy for it?

Is it really 1000$ a year? In that case one should get his subscription members and send the nigerian mails out! You can sell sand in Sahara to them.

And talking about Apple, its going the wrong way fast for them, even in the US:
http://vr-zone.com/articles/verizon-might-have-to-pay-apple-14b-as-iphone-sales-slow-down/44989.html

 

[NTMBK]

Actually, the cheaper "Student" subscription is only(!) $100.

I dunno, there's probably *something* behind this. Whether its paying for exclusive use of a fab or what, I don't know. But I won't pay $100 for it.

 

[CHADBOGA]

[redacted]

Thread crapping will not be tolerated
-ViRGE

 

[CHADBOGA]

Some people just can't handle the TRUTH.

Chuckles and his followers are mental midgets and a blight on all forums.

 

[cytg111]

And talking about Apple, its going the wrong way fast for them, even in the US:
http://vr-zone.com/articles/verizon-might-have-to-pay-apple-14b-as-iphone-sales-slow-down/44989.html

Thats just sad.. like the rolling stones without Jagger. Rock on Steve.

 

[PPB]

Made up BS that somehow ends up happening in the long run. Charlie only shows that reality can sometimes be whackier than our perception of "fantasy". I have seen more hits than misses in his stories.

 

[FwFred]

CNET reports Charlie's article says Global Foundries

 

[CakeMonster]

I have seen more hits than misses in his stories.

Confirmation bias

 

[sushiwarrior]

Confirmation bias

Gee, that was absolutely useful. I would agree that I have literally seen more hits than misses. Go through his stories and read. He is not one to post a story before he knows everything about it. He waits until the info is quite concrete, yet he still manages to get the stories so early.

Call him biased/crazy, but his info is spot on.

 

[Vesku]

While I certainly wouldn't pay to read his articles, Charlie does seem to have industry contacts, particularly ones with insight regarding Nvidia. He got a heads up on bumpgate, GeForce 600 series performance, and his predictions about Nvidia's Tegra 3 and 4 were reasonably accurate even if colored by his antagonism with the company over a falling out.

A US located fab partnership with GF is an interesting twist to this story. Apple's dealings with Samsung and Foxconn have made them more concerned with controlling the entire development chain.

 

[tviceman]

I don't think Apple has their own fab, but at this point since they have both the chip volume and cash on hand to make it happen, I don't see why they don't build their on chip fabs. I know easier said than done, but they have the resources to move mountains if they wish.

 

[PPB]

He was also spot on when he said Broadwell would be BGA only, even tho everyone and their dog went full-denial mode after hearing it from him.