The big three are all hurting because of the economy and PC sales woes.Apple,AMDandIntelall posted warnings on revenue shortfalls and downward revenue revisions. Higher than expected component prices led many PC manufacturers to hike prices in an already weakened market. For Apple, new iMac sales, product improvements, and the introduction ofeMac salesfor everyone did little to stave off warnings. AMD was particularly hit hard, announcing revenues for the second quarter will be up to 24% lower than expected. Yes, PC sales may be to blame, but the release delays for T-Bred and ongoing battles with Intel on the price front sure didn’t help.
Even with the second quarter problems, the companies are pushing on. Intel is pushing the Itanium with McKinley about to launch and Madisonsamplingand to launch next year. AMD is also moving forward with Hammer, but third party chipsets are beingpushed backwardsto 2003. When launched, AMD may find clear sailing in Hammer’s 32-bit compatibility, it looks like Intel isbacking offof Yamhill technology previously reported on. With the current outlook for the big three, 2003 cannot come fast enough.
