Intel Corp (INTC)

[jhalada]

chipguy,

You are wrong. The primary difference between an MPU and
a northbridge is the time and manpower needed to design
it and the methodologies used.

So the fact that the most die of the chipset "bin" at, say 800 MHz, but you sell them at 400 MHz (therefore all are sellable) vs. CPU that bins at 800 MHz (on the same process technology), but you need 4.5 GHz to be competitive plays no role?

Oh yes, and Intel happens to employ an army, and pays 10s of billions to get the CPUs to the 4.5 GHz, and yet it is only spitting them out in low 3 GHz.

If you say that Intel can TODAY produce an 800 MHz Coppermine at the same cost as an average chipset sold today, you would be largely right. But Intel certainly could not do so at the same price 6 years ago. Intel employed army of men counted in 10s of thousands to squeeze the last MHz out of the Coppermine.

Let me get this (since you didn't explicitly go out on the limb with wbmw). Do you agree with wbmw that Intel production cost of either a chipset or a CPU is roughly equal to $30? Something that, BTW, TSMC can do for SiS for some $15, and still make a profit?

Joe