by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Comments by Advanced Micro Devices yesterday apparently have triggered worries on the Street that the PC manufacturers, in their zealous optimism about the prospects for Microsoft Windows 7, may have built too many PCs.
As I noted last night, AMD said on its post-earnings conference call with the Street that it expects a less-than-seasonal sequential increase in Q4 revenues, due in part to the “the big build we’ve seen of PCs in anticipation of the Win 7 launch.”
Intel has admitted to some major gaffes in handling documents in an antitrust suit filed by Advanced Micro Devices, which is moving toward a trial next March. Now the chip giant says the shoe is on AMD’s foot.
Intel this week filed a motion seeking sanctions against AMD, alleging that its smaller rival failed to adequately retain and produce documents in the case and tried to hide its lapses.
Hardware freaks flocked to San Francisco last week to hear Intel talk about microprocessors, the electronic brains in PCs. But Advanced Micro Devices made some pretty brainy claims of its own.
There was a time when people cared a lot about the microprocessors in their PCs–a bit like teenagers once bragged that their Impala had a 450-horsepower V8 engine under the hood. Advanced Micro Devices seems to be betting those days are over.
IBM has often marched to a different drummer in computer chips. But Big Blue will take a step closer to conventional wisdom next year.
No, IBM is not moving away from developing electronic brains for its own servers, as most computer makers have. While some IBM servers do use the ubiquitous x86 chips designed by Intel and Advanced Micro Devices, IBM continues to extend the internally-developed Power line of microprocessors for other systems as well as chips for IBM mainframes.
There’s considerable doom and gloom hanging over this week’s Semicon West trade show in San Francisco. The event hosts suppliers of semiconductor manufacturing equipment and materials, one of the hardest-hit sectors in technology. Globalfoundries is one of few bright spots.
Patrick Moorhead, vice president of advanced marketing at Advanced Micro Devices, is a prolific blogger and tweeter about issues of concern to the chip maker. One of his biggest pet peeves is how battery life is measured in laptops, a topic that he thinks is going to become very hot.
No one can say for sure that antitrust regulators in Europe will levy a big fine against Intel next week, or ever for that matter. But there don’t seem to be too many people betting against that possibility.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Advanced Micro Devices shares posted better-than-expected Q1 revenues, but also said Q2 revenues will be sequentially lower, due to macro conditions, limited visibility and historical seasonal patterns. Note that Intel previously predicted flat revenue for the second quarter.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Tessera Technologies is disappointed tonight after the Administrative Law Judge overseeing its patent infringement case against Advanced Micro Devices, Fresscale Semiconductor, Motorola, Qualcomm, Spansion and STMicroelectronics judged for the semiconductor companies. The company was hoping for a judgment in its favor and an accompanying windfall–instead, its share price dropped 44 percent today.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
It’s been a rough day for highly leveraged semiconductor stocks.
In a research note this morning, Citigroup’s Glen Yeung provided a review of the credit liabilities of the chip companies Citi has under coverage. He notes that Advance Micro Devices (AMD), Spansion (SPSN), Infineon (IFX) and Qimonda (QI) all have debt coming due in the next 15 months.
Dirk Meyer was six months out of college and working as an engineer for Intel when he ran into Bob Noyce, the company’s legendary co-founder and co-inventor of the integrated circuit, at the punch bowl at a shareholders meeting.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Bank of America’s Sumit Dhanda this morning upped his rating on Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) to Neutral from Sell, setting a price target of $6. “Having been consistently cautious on the stock since early 2006, we now believe that our thesis has largely played out–share losses to Intel (INTC), persistent pressure on cash flow/profitability, strain on the balance sheet–and that the stock has limited downside risk from current levels.”
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Merrill Lynch chip analyst Srini Pajjuri this morning cut his rating on Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) to Underperform from Neutral, while moving Analog Devices (ADI) in the other direction, to Neutral from Underperform.
by Michelle Quinn, Reporter, Computers and Digital Music, L.A. Times
We’ve come a long way since Pong and Space Invaders. But video and computer games are still striving to be both interactive and realistic. Have you seen the “Saturday Night Live” skit of the interview with Grand Theft Auto IV’s main characters, Niko and Vlad?
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