Prince McLeanGraphics chip maker Nvidia Corp. has beat out Broadcom Corp. in a major design win for Apple Computer's next-generation video iPod product line, according to one Wall Street analyst.
The video capabilities of Apple's current fifth-generation iPods are made possible by a chip from Broadcom.
"We believe the Nvidia chip adds 3D graphics functionality in addition to all of the existing features that Broadcom supported with the existing video iPod," Chillara added.
As a result of his findings, the analyst upgraded shares of Nvidia to "Buy" from "Hold" while downgrading shares of Broadcom to "Hold" from "Buy."
"We view this development as negative" for Broadcom, Chillara said, explaining that Apple's fifth-generation iPods have contributed between $50 and $70 million in revenue for the company each quarter.
Apple's decision to adopt Nvidia chips in the next video iPod represents the second major iPod component supplier swap in recent months:
In April, it was reported that Samsung beat out PortalPlayer as the system-on-a-chip (SoC) supplier for the second-generation iPod nano.
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51 Comments
Woah. O_O;;
Would possibly explain some of the new game stuff found in the iPod update code.
Hmmmm all this chipset swappery doesn't sound like a product whose release is imminent....
Grrrr.... guess I'll have to stick with my shuffle for a while longer!
Yet another odd indicator for buy/hold transitions from the analysts; NVidia seems slightly less diverse, but at least in the next 12-18 months I can't imagine iPod video chips being of significant consequence for either company. Especially Broadcom.
Hmmmm all this chipset swappery doesn't sound like a product whose release is imminent....
Depends on how old the information is. This could be information that is 6-12 months old! If it is even reliable.