Intel to Purchase Altera? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: German_EE
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2015, 08:58:34 pm
content: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/03/27/uk-altera-m-a-intel-idUKKBN0MN2G320150327No mention on other news websites.

author: photon
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2015, 09:15:24 pm
content: Just a rumor, but an interesting one. I have also heard the rumor of Samsung buying AMD. That would give Intel some heartburn.

author: calexanian
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2015, 10:59:08 pm
content: Oh let the FPGA DSP shit storm begin.

author: BloodyCactus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2015, 11:08:31 pm
content: Quote from: photon on March 27, 2015, 09:15:24 pmdoubt it, someone else buying AMD invalidates AMD's x86 license (as I udnerstand it), which leave what, the ATI stuff and not much else.

author: photon
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2015, 11:38:40 pm
content: Quote from: BloodyCactus on March 27, 2015, 11:08:31 pmInteresting. I did not know that.

author: mikeselectricstuff
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 27, 2015, 11:39:25 pm
content: I have a vague recollection that back in the days of DIL, 5V UV eraseable parts, Intel were a second source for Altera's EP6xx PLDs (or was it the other way round?).ISTR these were really nice devices in their day, as they had lots of macrocells, and they were less tightly dedicated to pins than the 22V10s etc.of the day. so you could have buried logic. I think they also had a T-type flipflop mod which was handy for big counters .

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 28, 2015, 12:00:21 am
content: Quote from: mikeselectricstuffWell, in OZ, I was a customer support engineer for TI, and bought their first re-badged Altera EPxxx development kit. As a developer,I got it 50% off, only $12,000 :-) .. I finally gave it away a few WEEKS ago at EEVMartys last sale ! They were awesome chips back then.Quote from: mikeselectricstuffYup, all the above and more

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 28, 2015, 02:03:37 am
content: My greatest fear is they will try to shoehorn their crappy x86 into an FPGA when it doesn't need to be there.Intel have tried (and failed) to get some momentum going before by slapping Atoms onto fpga boards.If you're going to turn a SoC into a space heater, at least do it properly. Netburst or GTFO!

author: photon
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 28, 2015, 02:48:45 am
content: Again, Intel buying Altera is a rumor, but if true the synergy is, as I understand it, that Intel is currently the fab for Altera's 14nm fpga. Intel obviously needs to keep it's fabs busy, if it is to prosper going forward, but does not have the experience of a TSMC as a foundy provider. Having Altera in house removes that problem.

author: Alexei.Polkhanov
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 28, 2015, 03:38:17 am
content: Pretty sad if it happens. Certainly there will be benefits but Intel is big almost monopoly alreadyI naturally hate all big orgs and governments - give too much control into singe hands and they will start abusing it in most unimaginable way. Like one guy who came back from hospital, after being hit by a train, said, while trashing boiling teapot on a stove - "You have to kill them while they are still small!".

author: miguelvp
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 28, 2015, 04:38:40 am
content: Data centers are big business.Servers with attached FPGAs to alleviate the protocol overhead is becoming the norm.Intel has a long collaboration with Altera specially on their new Stratix 10 series that uses Intel's 14nm Tri-Gate technology.I posted a boring video about this a while back, I'll relink it if I find it.Anyways, it just makes sense but it's still just a rumor.Edit: found the link:https://www.eevblog.com/forum/microcontrollers/intel-unveils-a-new-xeon-chip-with-integrated-fpga/and the two year old almost boring video (wasn't too boring for me):More info on the Stratix 10:https://www.altera.com/products/fpga/stratix-series/stratix-10/overview.html

author: Gribo
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 28, 2015, 08:37:28 am
content: I still have an erasable I5180 (Altera EP1800) somewhere in my component bin..

author: danfo098
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 02:20:55 pm
content: It's final.http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-01/intel-buys-altera-for-16-7-billion-as-chip-deals-accelerate

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 03:55:32 pm
content: I don't see how this can end well for the users of lowend parts (us)...

author: miguelvp
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 04:08:00 pm
content: Quote from: marshallh on June 01, 2015, 03:55:32 pmI see the opposite. Intel needs the IP, and Altera needs the financial security. And servers need cost reduction to be competitive.I think in CPU dedicated FPGAs are a great fit for servers as Google and Microsoft have been demonstrating.

author: daqq
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 04:37:24 pm
content: Good bye anything in TQFP...

author: tszaboo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 04:48:46 pm
content: Quote from: miguelvp on June 01, 2015, 04:08:00 pmWell but there is thatQuoteI think Intel has a great misunderstanding how the MCU market works, like their led blinky 256MB ram Galileo, on the other hand it is possible that people from altera will get to key positions and they will have the final saying.Not to mention, Intel once again may produce ARM processors (A9-A57), which can be a market changes in a lot of segments.

author: John_ITIC
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 05:00:16 pm
content: I have a feeling that business in the US is going down the drain. Overall, I've seen a very sluggish economy the last couple of years. Companies being sold must mean that they are not making money. If huge companies like Broadcom and Altera are being sold off, It must mean they are struggling and want to pass responsibility to someone else.Any opinions on this?The last time I saw this was in 2007 before the bottom fell out...

author: free_electron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 05:48:08 pm
content: so they've come full circle. the first EPLD ( EPLD610 and 910) were intel designs. Altera spun those and then cut the cord with intel. the last couple of years altera had been running their silicon in intel's fabs anyway. so they've come home...

author: Mechanical Menace
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 06:12:09 pm
content: Quote from: John_ITIC on June 01, 2015, 05:00:16 pmThere are 2 main reasons for buyouts from the buyers pov, bring competition in house or adding another income stream. A company that can't make you money (either directly or by limiting losses) isn't a viable purchase.

author: John_ITIC
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 08:20:35 pm
content: Quote from: Mechanical Menace on June 01, 2015, 06:12:09 pmYes but there's also companies that are struggling to make money, they know it but the buyer might not be fully aware of it. The buyer thinks they will do a better job and the merger goes forward. A couple of years later, the merged company is again sold to someone else, passing along the hot potato. I've seen this trend in the protocol analysis business where CATC got acquired by LeCroy, who in turn got acquired by Teledyne. Based on financials, the engineering costs in the U.S. are too high so profit per employee is not very good. Another example is the Skype Acquisition by Ebay which flopped and was then sold off.

author: daqq
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2015, 04:59:45 am
content: QuoteThere are such things AFAIK:http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/184828-intel-unveils-new-xeon-chip-with-integrated-fpga-touts-20x-performance-boostAlso there was an Atom core coupled to an FPGA kind of device.Well, such things would be cool and all - it's not that that I'm worried about - Intel has a rather, well, corporate approach to everything - I get the vibe out of them that they don't give much crap about the little guy - which I am. Unless you count the Edison thingie, which is nice, but assumes you want to buy a module and work around that, not a part you can solder somewhere. The lower end stuff might disappear. Also, Intel's already got a lot going on. The best I can hope for is that they leave the core business and products alone and improve upon them, while integrating the programmable fabric onto the next gen CPUs.Oh, and I dearly hope AMD will NOT acquire Xilinx, because then we're royally screwed.

author: andersm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2015, 09:49:43 am
content: Quote from: daqq on June 02, 2015, 04:59:45 amI don't think they take IOUs.

author: Halcyon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 02, 2015, 10:01:34 am
content: http://www.itnews.com.au/News/404713,intel-to-buy-altera-for-22-billion.aspx

author: shanky887614
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2015, 10:20:00 am
content: if Samsung bought amd then got an x86 license they could make massive improvements.a lot of amd chips are still built on 32nm waffers while intel are onto say 16nm but the biggest difference is the IPC count.it will get interesting if amd manage to boost it. it might kick intel into gear to start increasing performence again. (there hasnt been a massive improvement over the last few generations, the mobile market might be different though)

author: autobot
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2015, 11:30:47 am
content: Quote from: blueskull on March 28, 2015, 04:19:57 amThe combination you describe looks like a very good product, powerful, low power ,versatile, very useful in embedded , although it can be improved a bit by adding another real-time core , i.e. one core running RTOS/bare with the other running linux.Two big problems though -1. is BOM below $200 low enough ? it seems very expensive.2. Do people trust intel as a supplier for long living products after having bad history ? are people willing to use a product without alternative suppliers that is very hard to port from ?

author: andersm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2015, 01:41:33 pm
content: Quote from: autobot on June 02, 2015, 11:30:47 amIntel have had long-life industrial products (eg. the 386ex was produced from 1994 to 2007). They also own Wind River, who is a big player in the embedded market.

author: kfnight
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2015, 02:01:06 pm
content: Quote from: daqq on June 02, 2015, 04:59:45 amIt'd be the other way around.

author: Alexei.Polkhanov
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 03, 2015, 10:19:51 pm
content: Quote from: autobot on June 02, 2015, 11:30:47 amNice you mentioned that! That would is my highest concern. Not depending on any single supplier of anything and avoiding all sorts of lock ins is at most importance in my opinion. However there are many engineers that are not as paranoid as I am.Those that working on hardware for big data centres (Google,Amazon,etc.) are simply ecstatic about this mergerHope they won't be disappointed.

author: Fantasma25
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 22, 2015, 12:39:45 am
content: I only hope that nobody else touches Xilinx and vice versa.

author: timofonic
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 22, 2015, 12:45:36 am
content: Quote from: Fantasma25 on August 22, 2015, 12:39:45 amOligopolies everywhere!I would think in the worst case scenario.Anyway, FPGAs worst thing is that they are as propietary than x86. They are the perfect match!Seriously, there's need big competition in this field. Fully open FPGAs, Open Source tools in the way of GCC and flexible designs.