The Next Killer Apps


The search is on for the next killer applications that will turn connected devices into the next smart phone or PC. Billions of dollars are being poured into startups and established companies, creating a spectrum of new ideas they're trying to bring to market. Whether those investments pay off with a single application, or whether they lead to new ideas that fuse together multiple markets, ... » read more

The Danger Of Denial


For years now, my diehard Mac-lover friends and this diehard PC fan have bantered back and forth about the superiority of one processor over the other. When Apple switched to the Intel platform in the late 2000s the argument went moot. I was right, they were wrong. PC’s were the best computers. Since then, the arguments about which platform is better have died off. They both do the job, a... » read more

The Week In Review: Manufacturing


Upgraded components in the new iPhone 6S Plus from Apple cost $16 more than the components in the earlier iPhone 6 Plus, according to IHS, which also provided a breakdown of the phone. Both Samsung and TSMC are making Apple’s A9 applications processor on a foundry basis, according to ExtremeTech, which cites Chipworks as its source. There are reports that the Chinese government is interes... » read more

The Week In Review: Manufacturing


Samsung Semiconductor unveiled its North American R&D Headquarters for its Device Solutions group in San Jose, Calif. The new campus is a 1.1 million-square-foot R&D, sales and marketing center. Is 5G the next big thing in wireless? Verizon–the first company to introduce 4G LTE–is once again poised to usher in a new era with an aggressive roadmap for fifth-generation, or 5G, wireless t... » read more

The Week In Review: Manufacturing


In case you missed it, Apple rolled out its latest iPhones and other products. The latest iPhone 6 is using chips based on finFETs. So, who won Apple’s application processor foundry business for the iPhone 7? “In our foundry checks, it appears Apple is likely splitting the 14/16nm business for the recent product launches between TSMC and Samsung. We suspect Samsung’s 14nm is used for the ... » read more

The Week In Review: Manufacturing


KKR, an investment firm, announced that it is leading a $42 million growth equity investment in Optimal+, a provider of manufacturing intelligence software solutions for adaptive IC test applications. In case you missed it, Apple rolled out its latest iPhones and other products. The latest iPhone 6 is using chips based on finFETs, according to AnandTech, a hi-tech site. Samsung is the main... » read more

Explosion Of Creativity


One of Steve Jobs' great revelations occurred while watching his young daughter use a computer with a graphical user interface. He observed that adults ask how to use a computer, whereas children ask what you can do with it. The semiconductor industry is experiencing one of those seminal moments with the Internet of Things/Internet of Everything. While work continues to ensure that electrons... » read more

Quality And Safety In Automotive Electronics: Venturing beyond ISO-26262


By Bernard Murphy and Jim Hogan Rumors of ‘Project Titan’, the Apple Car, are making the rounds. True or not, when we hear Apple touted as a potential automaker, it’s clear how pervasively electronic content has invaded our cars. A 2013 National Auto Dealers Association report graded electronic content at 15% of auto-buying decision factors, impressive growth from close to zero only... » read more

Getting Paid More


Consolidation is a regular news item in the semiconductor industry, and has been for years, but most of those deals have been relatively small. What's changing is the amount of consolidation involving big companies, fueled partly by a massive M&A fund in China, partly by an arms race in preparation for the IoE, and partly by the kind of thinking that if other companies are doing it, it's dan... » read more

Software Driving More Hardware Designs


The influence of software engineers is growing inside of chip and systems companies, reversing a decades-old trend of matching the software to the fastest or most power-efficient hardware and raising as-yet unanswered questions about what will change in SoC design. The shift is particularly evident in chips developed for high-volume markets such as mobile phones and tablets. It's also happen... » read more

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