Might iPhone bring PortalPlayer back into the fold?
Much is made of the open- versus closed-ecosystem models of the PC and Mac worlds, with Apple’s obsessive helming of their hardware oft credited for their success in usability, reliability and that overall sense of “specialness” that keeps the zealots so contented and the Microsoft-faithful ever on the defencive. Yet behind that homogenised corporate achievement are a number of individual success stories: those of processor, chipset and graphics manufacturers, to mention just a few. Apple’s achievements in interface and design are founded upon carefully selected hardware partnerships and, in a world where key products in their catalogue are credited not only with topping the sales charts but of revolutionising whole market segments, there’s little doubt that being included on their circuit board can be a faststream to profit.
Seeking Alpha’s Sramana Mitra dips a toe or two into the murky waters of Apple’s mysterious hardware suppliers, secure in the knowledge that if only one thing is known to be true then that’s that “someone must be making a killing off this on the chip side.” It’s a safe assumption, and Mitra herself is leaning toward graphics maestros Nvidia being next in line for some vicarious light from the Cupertino halo.
Original post by Chris Davies