Samsung may play a larger role in the production of Apple's next generation A8 processor than previously rumored, claims ZDNet Korea (via GforGames). According to the report, the Korean company has already signed a contract to produce the A8 processor at its Austin, Texas plant and is in the final stages of testing before mass production begins.
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This latest information from an anonymous Samsung official contradicts an earlier report that said Samsung was struggling with poor yields of the A8 processor and could not meet Apple's demands. As a result, the bulk of A8 chip production was said to be shifting to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). These "manufacturing issues" were "exaggerated claims" says the Samsung source, stating that the company is ready to start mass production of the A8 in Q2 2014.
While Samsung and TSMC may be splitting A8 production however, the latter already appears to have a lead on the Korean manufacturer. A recent report from Taiwan's Commercial Times claims TSMC has started production of the next generation chip.
Samsung has been the exclusive manufacturer of Apple's A-series chips, but Apple has been looking to depend less on its rival by shifting some of its orders to TSMC. Apple reportedly struck a deal with TSMC in 2013 to start A-series chip production early in 2014.
Top Rated Comments
Also known as, just making stuff up.
Obviously none of these so called reporters have any idea what is going on.
Please enlighten me how you can tell what a device is going to look like and how the OS will operate from just knowing or producing a chip that goes inside it.
It's a full time job copying the competition and rerouting your R & D budget into marketing, to ram your products down consumers throats. Genius business tactic - cheaper to copy and pay for patent infringement in court than to spend on original R & D.
Samsung are the equivalent of those dodgy market places in south east asia where you can buy cheap knock offs of anything from Armani suits to televisions. When are the courts going to stop this? I guess there is a political and economic motivation behind allowing Samsung to get away with this consistently - other than last year's victory.
Congrats! This is an excellent example of spontaneously combustible material. Flame on.:o
You realize that Samsung doesn't only make phones, right? And that their phones are only a percentage of their business. Furthermore, Samsung has been accused of copying the software/UX/OS, not the hardware, AFAIK.
So I seriously doubt they would've been "toast."