Analysis - Intel widens 32nm chasm with AMD

[HEXUS]

With Intel edging ever nearer to introducing 32nm products, analysts see the technological gap widening with AMD.

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[drunkenmaster]

The biggest reason for the delay in 45nm introduction wasn't anything to do with a technological advantage Intel has, which, they don't and won't have. Simply logistics, Intel have eleventy billion fabs working at whatever output they want, a safe, cheap 70-80% output maybe, so shutting one down, running a few more waifers in through other plants while they upgrade a plant to a new process and run some test waifers, get up to speed etc, etc, is NOTHING to Intel. AMD however, with 2 main fabs in dresden, running some 90-95% capacity, can not in any way just shut down one fab while the others pick up the slack.

This led to a very slow turn around to a new process, they changed over each fab bit by bit, after waiting till yields on the old process were so ridiculously efficient and high they could stock pile some chips to keep sales going while output drops dramatically. They had 45nm tech ready to go when Intel did basically, you could argue that the manufacturing consortium AMD are in leave it in a far stronger position to fund, test and produce new process's as we get into newer methods as sizes get smaller. For instance AMD used immersion lithography before Intel did.

However AMD will likely have a disadvantage till the new fab is up and running which will give them, at least for a couple years, the ability to run at a much lower capacity in each fab enabling things like updating one fab much much much easier. The New York fab will, arguably, be better than anything Intel have to date, producing better yields than anything else on the newest processes. AMD now has more resources than Intel, and can likely build another 6billion fab the second they need one when fab 3 starts to get to a very high capacity also, but building a truly state of the art fab takes time.

The argument that AMD waifers not being made inhouse increasing costs is beyond ridiculous, AMD owns a massive amount of GloFo, and GloFo own a massive amount of AMD< its one company operating under two names and its that simple. Prices will go down with better fabs, not increase because its officially out of house production, while unofficially its not at all.

Theres also a link between the New York state fab and one of the worlds most advanced test fabs down the road thats currently testing all sorts of things which will almost certainly be used in the future production of chips at 22nm and below, the test lab, where students are learning about the future processes, is also a fantastic source of future employee's for AMD to snap up in their fancy new lab once their PHD's are all done.