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More On IBM's Next-Gen Xbox Chipset Win
Pieroxy writes "EE Times reports further details on Microsoft's use of IBM chips in its next generation Xbox game and consumer electronics devices, dealing a blow to Intel and providing a much needed boost for IBM's lossmaking chip business." An analyst claims that "IBM is likely to modify its most advanced G5 PowerPC silicon, which is being used in Apple Computer's fastest Macintosh desktops, for the embedded market, reducing the cache and cutting power consumption", and further comments: "This is likely to heat things up at Intel, but it is competition that is healthy for the industry. It's ironic that IBM, with its roots in the computer industry, doesn't supply the processors for the main portion of the personal computer industry. Intel does." We covered IBM's initial announcement as a section-specific story earlier today.
Maybe writing it all from scratch will teach them something about implementing a reliable operating system
funny geeky shirt
That's IBM... supplying Microsoft... with PowerPC processors... for a gaming console...?
If anyone needs me, I'll be conferring with my local pastor as to whether or not Hell has frozen over.
Emacs: for people who just never know when to
Apparently going to Best Buy and buying a hard drive is now "piracy".
Yes, but only because 80% of these people return home via ship and swing on a rope into their homes. Arrrrgh!
Microsoft wants you to throw out all of your old stuff and buy new stuff. This is, after all, their business model. Don't use Windows 2000 with Office 2000 anymore! Throw it out and buy Windows XP and Office XP instead. Then throw all that out and buy Office 2003 and run it on, oh wait, we have no Windows 2003 for the desktop - doh! Just missed an opportunity to sell a new round of OS upgrades - cr*p!
Personally, this isnt too much of a surprise. Consoles generally use a chip specialized for their specific needs (much like the architecture of the XBox was specialized for it, rather than being a straight PC). Intel is most likely too big to do something that is both relatively (to Intel) small scale and essentially a single-purpose chip.
IBM, on the other hand, is hungrier than Intel, and is also the only company set up with the necessary chip fabrication resources to create a high volume of very specialized chips.
Honesly, the only other way this could work out is if the XBox2 were going to stick with the Pentium line; since the XBox2 is most likely going to aim much higher than the XBox (maybe with integrated PVR and expanded multimedia features), they seem to have outgrown their original product design.
Oh well, maybe Intel can nab that lucrative contract selling chips for Infinium Lab's "Phantom"
Manipulate the moderator system! Mod someone as "overrated" today.
Prediction:
This will be the one PPC Platform where Microsoft will deliver a version of Virtual PC that works with the G5.
These are my friends, See how they glisten. See this one shine, how he smiles in the light.
Sorry, forgot about the GBA. DOH.
Thanks for being an asshat tho.
The secret to getting modded up is to allways say i've got karma to burn in your sig..