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Apple Buys Chip Company to Make Own iPhone Processors

gizmodo.com — Apple's bought itself a chip company, P.A. Semi, that could make chips for future iPods and iPhones. The $287 million deal, which finished recently, was negotiated in The Steve's home.

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  • Rauby, on 04/23/2008, -2/+5Nice move Apple!
  • nastronomical, on 04/23/2008, -4/+4Oh lawd!!! what we gonna do?
  • Vorin, on 04/23/2008, -0/+5nothing like a nice bag of chips to curb your appetite.
  • JayD16, on 04/23/2008, -0/+2Makes me worry that Atom isn't going to be that great.
    • Vorin, on 04/23/2008, -1/+3The Atom is a central processor meant for at least semi-serious computing. This company that is now owned by Apple will be doing embedded chipsets, like those used in portable electronics.
      From the chipmaker's site "high-performance embedded-computing markets"
      • JayD16, on 04/23/2008, -0/+2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Atom

        You just described the same usage. I'm worried that Apple thinks that the Atom is so insufficient for the it's iphone/ipod touch that it had to buy a chip company.
        • Vorin, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1ok, so i didn't realize the atom was going to be as focussed on hand-held portables as it is laptops, but did you mean insufficient or inefficient? It seems that it would be sufficient proc. power, but it might not be the most efficient.
    • frem001, on 04/23/2008, -0/+3The atom has its place, i'm sure it will be fine, but only if other companies can make a decent product out of it.... oh wait it's *****.
    • geoken, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1This has nothing to do with the greatness of other chips, and everything to do with the ability to lock down a custom platform vs. the ability to lock down an open platform.
  • Miraa, on 04/23/2008, -0/+5Could make chips for mobile devices, but their website touts their 64-bit desktop and embedded processors heavily. So, I'm thinking this is for future licensing deals, AppleTV, small home servers...
    http://www.pasemi.com/processors/index.html
    • JayD16, on 04/23/2008, -0/+2Ah, that makes more sense then the iPhone guesses echoing throughout the blogs.
      • BLAM8, on 04/23/2008, -0/+2Who is to say it's what they've already announced? Plus, embedded can mean mobile.
  • BlueStarr, on 04/23/2008, -3/+2Whoa...first Hillary, now this.
  • colincornaby, on 04/23/2008, -0/+2On one hand, it's super awesome that Apple now has their own processors. On the other hand, I really hope this doesn't mean the Mac gets switched back to PowerPC (the kind of chips P.A. Semi makes). It's been nice being on Intel, with standard hardware and being able to run Windows.
    • mrmisch219, on 04/23/2008, -1/+0Apple knows better than to do that. Intel made them who they are today. In order to be successful they have to keep compatibility with windoz. At least until M$ comes out with their next OS and everyone finally gives up because it's so ***** and switches to Mac. Actually the number of people already making the switch is huge.
    • timusca, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1It was too difficult a task to make the switch to Intel... there's no way they are going to undo all that work and piss off millions of people beyond repair.
    • EvilAnimator, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1This is just for the handheld stuff. Read the article.
      • colincornaby, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1Technically, nobody knows what it was for yet. It likely it for the handheld stuff, but PA Semi does make desktop chips.
  • stridermt2k, on 04/23/2008, -1/+0Great stuff!

    Batter than paint chips.
  • timusca, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1I wonder if Intel is worried or threatened by this at all... not in the sense of competition, but losing business...
  • GeorgeStone2, on 04/23/2008, -0/+3Steves PA: Damnit, Semi aren't moving on their CPU price. They want $50 a unit.
    Steve Jobs: Did you tell them that we need 10 million?
    Steves PA: Yes sir, I did.
    Steve Jobs: God damn, at this rate it would be cheaper to buy the company.
    *Collective laughter*
    Steve Jobs: Hmmmmm

    Digg.com/apple/BREAKING_Apple_Chip_Company_[PICS]_DIGG
  • keyme, on 04/23/2008, -0/+2So much for hacking the iPhone. The only reason this was possible by far is because the device uses the s-gold 2 chipset, to which there are data sheets available online. Reverse engineering a custom made chip, without any open documentation, is going to prove very hard.

    It's enough for them to implement a hardware based protection scheme within this chip, and hacking the device could become nearly impossible.
    • Vorin, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1that's when i would realize that the company hated me as their customer, and i would buy from a dif. manufacturer.
  • EvilAnimator, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1Suck it, Motorola!
  • tomaburque, on 04/23/2008, -1/+1Here's a much better article about the chip company Apple bought than the Gizmodo one:

    http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080423-appl ...

    5 to 13 watt chips are too big for iPhone type devices. It sounds to me like these are intended for the range between EEE PC size notebooks and the Apple TV. I'm excited. Current notebook computers get too hot. I want a lightweight, cool (literally) computer that you can set on your lap without burning your testicles. And I would like to have a desktop computer without big fans that doesn't sound like a 727 taxing down the runway.
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