If I were a NVIDIA
Chief rival Advanced Micro Devices
The Radeon 5670 is the first sub-$100 graphics product to support the version of DirectX programming that came with Microsoft's
In the words of longtime industry observer Charlie Demerjian, "ATI has no competition for the time being. NVIDIA can't match the cost, features, or anything else. ATI has a clean kill with this part." That's bad news for a company that makes more than half of its sales in the consumer graphics-chip segment. Meanwhile, NVIDIA is crossing lawsuits with Intel
NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang claims to have demand for more chips than he can supply, but you have to wonder how long that imbalance will last in the new competitive landscape. And this weakness comes at a very inconvenient time for NVIDIA: Market research firm Gartner says that demand for new computers is exploding worldwide, with heavy shipment increases for market leaders like Apple
Until NVIDIA shows that it can design a cost-effective performer in this critical low-end sector, I can't help but wonder whether chip giant Intel might swoop in and buy the flailing graphics expert at long last, if the government would allow it. Intel's manufacturing expertise and massive research department could be just what NVIDIA needs in order to become a competitor again. In any case, NVIDIA’s next-generation Fermi architecture can't come soon enough for its beleaguered lineup.
That's my take. What's yours? The comments box is waiting for your input below.