Chip makers are not fans of the new 64-bit A7 processor that powers Apple’s flagship iPhone 5s. First Qualcomm’s chief marketing officer Anand Chandrasekher took a swing at Apple and called the A7 a “marketing gimmick,” adding that the chipset’s new 64-bit architecture offered no benefits to users. Qualcomm quickly realized that insulting a key partner probably isn’t the best idea, however, and the company retracted Chandrasekher’s statement. Now another one of Apple’s partners has shared some thoughts on the company’s new A7 chip, and once again the comments weren’t very complimentary.
During Intel’s third-quarter earnings call on Tuesday, an analyst asked Intel’s chief executive to comment on Apple’s A7 processor. “[Apple] has been able to show very impressive benchmarks on 28-nanometer silicon,” the analyst said.
“All of our products are 64-bit,” Intel CEO Brian Krzanich replied, according to a transcription posted by CNET. “The products we’re shipping today are already 64-bit. And if you take a look at things like transistor density. And if you compare, pardon the pun, apples to apples, and compare the A7 to our Bay Trail, which has a high-density 22-nanometer technology, then our transistor density is higher than the A7 is.”
He continued, “The A7 is a good product, but we do see the Moore’s Law advantage from 28 [nanometers] to 22, when you compare dense technology to dense technology. And we believe 14 nanometers is just another extension of Moore’s Law. That is, twice the density [of 22-nanometers].”
Krzanich certainly wasn’t as harsh as Qualcomm’s CMO when discussing Apple’s A7 SoC, though he made it quite clear that Apple’s larger chip uses an older process that is less efficient and less tha, half as dense as Bay Trail chips. Devices powered by Intel’s new Bay Trail processors will begin launching next month.
Samsung is reportedly also working on a new 64-bit “Exynos 6” mobile processor that will power some mobile devices next year, and Samsung will also use a 14-nanometer process.
