Sunnyvale Econ 101: Yields and Positioning of Athlon 64

Zardon · Jun 4, 2004, 11:05 PM

If AMD’s Socket 939 launch earlier this week disappointed anyone, it wasn’t likely for performance, but for price. Long billed as the volume-oriented successor to Athlon 64’s Socket 754, AMD’s decision to launch Socket 939 as an exclusively high-end / high-cost option has left many potential users confused over what product it is they’re supposed to be buying from AMD—the lower-cost, shorter-term-but-powerful Socket 754, or the over-priced and longer-term Socket 939? Not a good situation to be in.

There are only a handful of reasons for AMD to launch Socket 939 as such a high-end option. Yields are part of the answer—all three of Sunnyvale’s 2.4 GHz parts are extremely expensive, while the 3500+ at 2.2 GHz is significantly cheaper (if still not cheap). There’s no reason to think AMD isn’t capable of pushing past 2.4 GHz on .13 micron, but they may be having trouble doing so at the moment. There is, however, another factor to consider.

sudhan

Jun 4, 2004, 11:05 PM	#1
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 179	Sunnyvale Econ 101: Yields and Positioning of Athlon 64 If AMD’s Socket 939 launch earlier this week disappointed anyone, it wasn’t likely for performance, but for price. Long billed as the volume-oriented successor to Athlon 64’s Socket 754, AMD’s decision to launch Socket 939 as an exclusively high-end / high-cost option has left many potential users confused over what product it is they’re supposed to be buying from AMD—the lower-cost, shorter-term-but-powerful Socket 754, or the over-priced and longer-term Socket 939? Not a good situation to be in. There are only a handful of reasons for AMD to launch Socket 939 as such a high-end option. Yields are part of the answer—all three of Sunnyvale’s 2.4 GHz parts are extremely expensive, while the 3500+ at 2.2 GHz is significantly cheaper (if still not cheap). There’s no reason to think AMD isn’t capable of pushing past 2.4 GHz on .13 micron, but they may be having trouble doing so at the moment. There is, however, another factor to consider. sudhan