Will Apple use the ‘Cell’ processor in Macs?

21 years ago

“Setting up a battle for the future of computing, engineers from IBM, Sony and Toshiba unveiled details Monday of a microprocessor they claim has the muscle of a supercomputer and can power everything from video game consoles to business computers,” Matthew Fordahl reports for The Associated Press. “Devices built with the processor, code-named Cell, will compete directly with the PC chips that have powered most of the world’s personal computers for a quarter century.”

“Cell’s designers say their chip, built from the start with the burgeoning world of rich media and broadband networks in mind, can deliver 10 times the performance of today’s PC processors. It also will not carry the same technical baggage that has made most of today’s computers compatible with older PCs. That architectural divergence will challenge the current dominant paradigm of computing that Microsoft Corp. and Intel Corp. have fostered,” Fordahl reports. “The new chip is expected to be used in Sony Corp.’s next-generation PlayStation game console in 2006. Toshiba Corp. plans to incorporate it into high-end televisions that year as well. And IBM Corp. has said it will sell a workstation with the chip starting later this year.”

“Beyond that, companies are remaining coy about where it might be used and whether it will be compatible with older technology,’ Fordahl reports. “Cell is comprised of several computing engines, or cores. A core based on IBM’s Power architecture controls eight ‘synergistic’ processing centers. In all, they can simultaneously carry out 10 instruction sequences, compared with two for today’s Intel chips. The new microprocessor also is expected to be able to run multiple operating systems and programs at the same time while ensuring each has enough resources. In the home, that could allow for a device that’s capable of handling a video game, television and general-purpose computer at once.”

“‘It’s very flexible,’ said Jim Kahle, an IBM fellow. ‘We support many operating systems with our virtualization technology so we can run multiple operating systems at the same time, doing different jobs on the system.’ Cell is said to run at clock speeds greater than 4 gigahertz, which would top the 3.8 GHz of Intel’s current top-speed chip,” Fordahl reports. “Cell’s designers said they are running a variety of operating systems on the processor at their lab in Austin, Texas. But they would not say whether Microsoft’s Windows is one of them. In fact, they only confirmed running Linux, the open source environment.”

Fordahl reports, “The PC industry has seen a long line of chips attempt to usurp the x86 architecture pioneered by Intel that dominates today’s computers. But all have failed, and Intel remains the world’s largest chip maker. In the 1990s, IBM, Motorola Inc. and Apple Computer Inc. pushed the PowerPC architecture. Though it’s still used by the Apple Macintosh as well as IBM workstations and servers, it failed to dethrone Intel.”

Full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: It would be more accurate to describe the PowerPC as having “thus far” failed to dethrone Intel. Until the PowerPC is discontinued, it cannot be accurately described as having “failed,” unless you assign some artificial time limit. Who’s to say where the finish line lies? Or as Yogi said, “It ain’t over, till it’s over.”

People today talk shortsightedly about Microsoft and Intel having “won” and Apple having “lost.” That also depends heavily upon your definition of the word “won.” After all, Windows users are all using the basic Mac user interface concepts that Apple introduced to the world with the Mac. Remember, too, that in 1929, Ford held just over 61% of the U.S. market for automobiles. General Motors’ market share stood at just 12%. Ford was thought to be invincible, with GM regarded as a niche auto maker. But, in 1936, just seven years later, Ford held 22% of the market for new automobiles while General Motors held a 43% share. No company is invincible. Not even Intel or Microsoft.