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Apple Plans To Make Chips For Handhelds

Posted by Soulskill on from the single-core-multi-core-or-apple-core dept.

Preedit writes "Apple plans to get into the business of designing microprocessors for handheld devices, according to legal papers that are part of a dispute between IBM and one of its top technology executives. IBM is suing Power chip expert Mark Papermaster for allegedly violating a non-compete agreement and accepting a job at Apple. In court papers, IBM claims Apple wants Papermaster 'to design microprocessors for incorporation in a variety of electronic devices, including handheld devices.' The suit, according to Infoweek, also notes that Apple earlier this year bought out P.A. Semi. IBM thinks it knows why."

14 of 154 comments (clear)

  1. Where is Apple using Power chips currently? by argent · · Score: 2, Informative

    IBM also claims that Apple considered replacing the IBM Power chips used in some of its computers with chips made by P.A. Semi.

    Apple isn't using Power chips in any of its current computers, is it? The iPod and iPhone are ARM, and they're not making or shipping anything but x86-based Macs.

    What am I missing?

    1. Re:Where is Apple using Power chips currently? by shawnce · · Score: 3, Informative

      Nope. PowerPC is not coming back on the desktop anytime soon for Apple. The P.A. Semi purchase is about SoC likely built around ARM for small devices (aka iPhone).

  2. Good luck with that~ by geekoid · · Score: 4, Informative

    non compete employment agreement are not viewed very favorably in California.

    http://www.boingboing.net/2008/08/08/california-supreme-c-1.html

    http://www.workforce.com/section/03/feature/25/82/12/index.html

    http://www.employlaw.com/noncompete.htm

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    1. Re:Good luck with that~ by OglinTatas · · Score: 4, Informative

      Prolly why IBM is filing in NY.

      http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/10/31/apple_ibm_chipper_lawsuit/

      --
      More music, fewer hits
    2. Re:Good luck with that~ by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

      Between Mr. Papermaster's residence in Texas and IBM located in NY, California law likely won't be involved.

  3. IBM has a case by blind+biker · · Score: 5, Informative

    except non-compete agreements were ruled unconstitutional

    And rightly so, I shall add. Non-compete agreements are total crap and I hope IBM gets smacked down hard in court over this frivolous lawsuit.

    What, you thought I was going to support IBM on this one? Don't believe everything you read in the subject line ;o)

    --
    "The agriculture ministry is not in charge of Gundam" - Japanese ministry official.
    1. Re:IBM has a case by lysergic.acid · · Score: 4, Informative

      don't know about the first one, but IBM seems to be meeting the last two requirements:
      -they're only asking that he refrain from working for Apple or another direct competitor for one year.
      -they offered to pay him a year's salary (on top of his default compensation package) in exchange for his abidance with the non-compete clause.

      while i think that non-compete clauses definitely have some potential for abuse by employers, i don't think IBM is being that unreasonable in this instance.

  4. Re:Steve's plans for world domination? by pete-classic · · Score: 2, Informative

    Huh? My first Mac keyboard (not quite three years old) has page up and page down keys. Never noticed my MacBook doesn't have them because the two-finger-scroll is so easy. They're normally buried in "Fn" hell on PC notebooks anyway.

    As for colors, what color do you want?

    -Peter

  5. Perfectly Legal by jdb2 · · Score: 3, Informative

    Power.org is the standards body that controls the POWER(PC) ISA specifications, among other things. Its members include IBM, *Apple*, Freescale and many others. If you want to build a custom designed chip based on one of the ISAs "owned" by Power.org, then all you need to do is become a member and license the ISA of your choice. You are then free to design any kind of custom *micro*-architecture your heart desires as long as the ISA presented by your chip/micro-architecture is compatible with the ISA you licensed from Power.org .

    I want some of whatever the hell IBM is smoking.

    jdb2

  6. Re:Steve's plans for world domination? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Fn-Arrow Up Fn-Arrow Down

  7. Re:Steve's plans for world domination? by pete-classic · · Score: 2, Informative

    You're right! Now I'm going to forget that and just scroll with two-fingers. ;-)

    -Peter

  8. Re:Designing their own? by neumayr · · Score: 2, Informative

    A better question would be why Intel bothers designing their own GPUs instead of partnering with nVidia.

    Might be because nVidia's chips are heavily based on licensed technology, which would restrict what Intel could do with it.
    Wasn't there a problem with Microsoft being pissed off because of nVidia's license for the XBox GPU, making them go to ATI for the 360?
    Something like that, don't remember where I read it though.

    --
    Truth arises more readily from error than from confusion. -Francis Bacon
  9. Re:Steve's plans for world domination? by despisethesun · · Score: 2, Informative

    I never knew about this, but it seems like a useful thing to know. For anyone else who didn't know this, you can find more info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_SysRq_key

    --
    This poo is cold.
  10. Re:Gosh and I wondered what they'd do with P.A. Se by Cyberax · · Score: 3, Informative

    Not quite true. A lot of companies still design microprocessors from scratch.

    For example, look at Chinese Longsoon CPUs, nanochip, OpenCores, and so on. I also know that several CPUs are designed from scratch in Russia.