Software reVisions
"ARM's 64-bit ambitions spell more trouble for Intel and AMD"
October 27, 2011 | by Ted Samson | InfoWorld
A Comment...
I have to wonder if the 64-bit ARMv8 architecture announcement is a case of overreaching. Announcing technology that is 2 years away sounds like "me-too-ism" or just FUD.
Their recent successes may have investors or principals seeing dollar signs and the chance to play with the big boys, but they should take care that they don't promise more than they can deliver.
Will this race into 64-bit force ARM to sacrifice their "crown jewels" of energy-efficiency, quality and programmability in order to release new chips on schedule?
That's why people are buying ARM. If ARM lets Intel and AMD push them into playing by their rules, ARM can't compete.
ARM can only compete by producing a better product than Intel and AMD.
Remember that the Apple-II 8-bit 6502 CPU ran at 1MHz when its principle competitor, the Z80, was partially 16-bit and ran at 2.5 to 8 times faster. People couldn't tell the difference between them in normal use though because the 6502 provided a more efficient instruction set. That it was a small fraction of the price didn't hurt either.
An inexpensive 32-bit ARM processor that allows manufacturers to build smartphones, tablets, laptops, PCs and even servers that can run on battery for 7 or 8 hours will probably have a much larger market than a 10 Gazillion-Hz CPU that has to be housed at the North Pole next to its nuclear reactor power supply.
They sell a lot more SUVs than they do Formula-1 racers.
A Comment...
I have to wonder if the 64-bit ARMv8 architecture announcement is a case of overreaching. Announcing technology that is 2 years away sounds like "me-too-ism" or just FUD.
Their recent successes may have investors or principals seeing dollar signs and the chance to play with the big boys, but they should take care that they don't promise more than they can deliver.
Will this race into 64-bit force ARM to sacrifice their "crown jewels" of energy-efficiency, quality and programmability in order to release new chips on schedule?
That's why people are buying ARM. If ARM lets Intel and AMD push them into playing by their rules, ARM can't compete.
ARM can only compete by producing a better product than Intel and AMD.
Remember that the Apple-II 8-bit 6502 CPU ran at 1MHz when its principle competitor, the Z80, was partially 16-bit and ran at 2.5 to 8 times faster. People couldn't tell the difference between them in normal use though because the 6502 provided a more efficient instruction set. That it was a small fraction of the price didn't hurt either.
An inexpensive 32-bit ARM processor that allows manufacturers to build smartphones, tablets, laptops, PCs and even servers that can run on battery for 7 or 8 hours will probably have a much larger market than a 10 Gazillion-Hz CPU that has to be housed at the North Pole next to its nuclear reactor power supply.
They sell a lot more SUVs than they do Formula-1 racers.
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