http://liliputing.com/2014/05/amd-unveils-plans-for-arm-x86-chips-that-are-pi...



Chip maker AMD has been competing with Intel in the x86 market for decades, but recently the company started working on ARM-based chips for servers and embedded applications. With feet in both worlds, AMD plans to do something no company has tried so far: In 2015 the company will offer pin-to-pin compatible x86 and ARM processors.

AMD calls the new platform Project SkyBridge, and describes it as an “ambidextrous” framework.  The pin-to-pin compatible chips will be 20nm, 64-bit processors. The x86 chips will be based on next-gen “Puma+” low-power designs, while the ARM chips will be based on ARM Cortex-A57 technology.

These same pin chipsets could lead to "standardization" of the AMD motherboard designs, which will make AMD much more desirable for system board builders since one board design covers both worlds.

Both chips will feature AMD graphics, and ARM chips will be the first from AMD to officially support Google Android.

AMD also plans to launch a 64-bit ARM server chip code-named Seattle this year. The company showed that off at an event in San Francisco today, promising support for web servers and popular applications such as WordPress.   While AMD’s first few ARM-based chips will be based on ARM’s Cortex-A57 designs, the company eventually plans to develop its own custom CPU technology based on ARM architecture.


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http://liliputing.com/2014/05/tango-pc-pocketable-dockable-pc-youll-regret-bu...



What kind of internals can you fit into a box this small? Pretty decent ones, it turns out: a 2GHz AMD A6-5200 quad-core with Radeon HD8400 graphics, 2GB to 8GB of RAM, and up to 1TB of internal storage. Those specs were introduced at the time of Tango’s IndieGoGo campaign a few months ago.

So, AMD isn't dead, just quietly living within their means and trying to "design things smart" so their products are desirable to their customer base, which are board builders who want to build new products that PEOPLE want to buy.

AMD



AMD has already downsized and is at fighting weight for the next generation.   Unfortunately, they are hand to mouth even at the trim fighting weight ....  Competing against ARM, not Intel is what is still killing them by inches and as ARM gets better AMD will suffer still more.   For AMD to die of starvation next year wouldn't surprise me very much.

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INTEL



Intel overall is still making money, even with stuffing those astoundingly huge losses right on down the mobile rabbit hole.    Intel has enough money to do this for a while still, but not forever.   Good news is Intel can shrink itself drastically more and more and still be bigger than AMD was at their peak size.

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Microsoft



Microsoft still makes money off of existing OS products charging corporations and individuals for yearly maintenance.   MS is losing market share and will eventually be affected on profitability, but not until folks retire their PC elephants and stop paying for yearly maintenance.

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Apple



Apple is stable and healthy, but sales are dropping since they haven't come out with anything really new lately.  Still, Apple is doing well enough compared to the rest.

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Google



Google really doesn't make chips or hardware (Asus and LG make the hardware and Google buys chipsets from whomever is hot at the moment).  Google gives away their software products for free, by and large.  What Google makes their money at is selling ads on line, sometimes associated with their browser products, sometimes just outright ad placements that pop up on various web sites around the web.  Badu in China is their real competitor right now, and Badu is growing in their home Chinese market to be very large, like Google.

Still, they makes a good bit of money doing ads, and it funds all their other hobbies (which we really appreciate, BTW).