GLOBALFOUNDRIES will be the primary supplier of Intel's 28nm baseband chips according to this unconfirmed report at DigiTimes. It seems that Intel really is moving towards a new business model and will be outsourcing some of their upcoming chips to both GLOFO and UMC. Their 28nm PolySiON process will be used to make the next generation of baseband transmitter chips and the new Atom SoC for cellphones and phablets will use TSMC's 28nm HKMG process. The higher end Broxton SoCs will remain at Intel and use their FinFET process. This is a big win for GLOFO and could mean the beginning of a lasting partnership with what was once an AMD asset.
"Intel has contracted Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) to manufacture its forthcoming Atom mobile processor series codenamed SoFIA, and also placed orders for entry-level baseband chips with Globalfoundries and United Microelectronics (UMC), according to industry sources."
Here is some more Tech News from around the web:
- Worldwide PC shipments decline 6.9% in 4Q13, says Gartner @ DigiTimes
- Microsoft is expected to put the Nvidia Tegra K1 in Surface tablets @ The Inquirer
- 7 Great New Open Source Projects @ Linux.com
- Intel launches 22nm Xeon E5-2400 v2 chips for servers @ The Inquirer
- Fairfax shovels another $250m into buying BlackBerry debt @ The Register
- Rogue Android: We show you how BlackBerry's pain can be your gain @ The Register
- Ford Exec: 'We Know Everyone Who Breaks the Law' Thanks To Our GPS In Your Car @ Slashdot
WTF this is a weird move for
WTF this is a weird move for intel of all people I mean they own the most advanced foundry in the world.
But their fabs are not
But their fabs are not necessarily well-tuned for baseband chips. If they can’t get enough quantities for those chips, outsourcing seems to be better than building or spending a whole lot themselves.
Btw, who knows if it’s just a temporary thing while they ramp up their fabs for baseband chips.
Very interesting. Thanks for
Very interesting. Thanks for sharing guys.