Is Apple Looking to Use AMD Processors?
Apple grudges lead to Apple rumors. This is the way of the universe. While we've been enjoying the fruits of Apple and Intel's labor since way back in 2006, some of our readers may recall that a while back, a brief chip supply shortage cast a pall over the otherwise sunny relationship. The delay in Apple's receiving of the chips forced a delay in the release of the refreshed MacBooks with Core i5 & Core i7 guts running the show. Those in the know about what goes down in Cupertino have reported that His Jobsness was none too pleased with the situation.That's the grudge. Now, the rumor.Apple Insider is reporting that Apple has been plenty chatty with AMD of late. The topic of the day? Why, the possibility of securing the chip manufacturing company as a secondary supplier of desktop and laptop class chips, of course. When compared to Intel's current offerings, AMD doesn't offer much along the lines of improved efficiency or performance over what Apple currently has under the hood, but their wares are significantally less expensive than Intels. This could could assist in turning one of the PC manufactuing world's favorite anti-Mac swords into a ploughshare: A lower component price could, after all, lead to a lower purchase price for consumers. Bye-bye Apple Tax. As Gizmodo has pointed out, the time Apple's spending with AMD could be nothing more than aggressive posturing to get Intel's attention and garner better treatment the next time a supply problem crops up. Only time will tell.
http://www.maclife.com/article/news/apple_looking_use_amd_chips
