Author Topic: ATI and Microsoft (Read 9386 times)

Uglydot · « **on:** August 14, 2003, 05:25:11 AM »

http://www.homelanfed.com/index.php?id=16362

Yep, ATI is officially with Microsoft. Wonder if they will also power the next Nintendo console or if Nintendo is looking elsewhere?

Bill Aurion · « **Reply #1 on:** August 14, 2003, 05:27:50 AM »

ATI is definitely sticking with Ninty. But just because both MS and Ninty are using ATI chips doesn't mean they will be the same. There will surely be two different teams at ATI working on each system's chip.

a4164 · « **Reply #2 on:** August 14, 2003, 06:26:45 AM »

Funny you should mention that. ATI has 2 dev teams Malborough (mostly original ATI, R100/R200) and their California team (mostly ArtX, R300/Flipper/N64 Reality Co-Processor). If they wanted to give each team a project they could. I'm guessing the ArtX team gets GC2 and the Malborough team gets Xbox2.

ATI to power Xbox2

ATI technology agreement with Nintendo

manunited4eva22 · « **Reply #3 on:** August 14, 2003, 01:29:23 PM »

The inquirer has been a bit ''unjournalistic'' lately. They claim ati severed contracts with nintendo inquirer claims

Bill Aurion · « **Reply #4 on:** August 14, 2003, 02:05:30 PM »

Don't worry, that's a load of crap. Not to long ago there was an interview with an ATI higher-up in which he confirmed their great partnership with Ninty on their next console.

Perfect Cell · « **Reply #5 on:** August 14, 2003, 02:47:51 PM »

I doubt Ati makes 2 different chips, because if they do, the company that would get the worse of the two would be very angry. It could be possible that both would get the same chip. I hope thats true, cause Tecmo wouldnt be able to give us the excuse that the only reason they work with X-Box is because its the most powerfull console. I really hope the new GC, gets at least a chip equally as good as a Microsoft chip....

Cap · « **Reply #6 on:** August 14, 2003, 03:33:13 PM »

theres no way in hell the chips will be the same, unless there is some kind of merger in the works that noone knows about. why would two different companies pay for ATI to develop a chip that is the exact same as in another console? how do you know the gc2 chip wont be better then what ms gets? both companies probably have different desires of what they want to do with their consoles, so the chips will probably be quite different.

Perfect Cell · « **Reply #7 on:** August 14, 2003, 04:25:57 PM »

No they dont have to be the same. But what if ATI makes a more powerfull chip for Microsoft than for Nitnendo, id be angry if i was Nintendo no?

Inkwell · « **Reply #8 on:** August 14, 2003, 04:34:45 PM »

It will probably come down to who is dishing out the most cash...I really don't see Nintendo winning that race. That only way I can see this the better chip goes to the company who is willing to spend the money to get that "extra" something.

Bill Aurion · « **Reply #9 on:** August 14, 2003, 04:42:07 PM »

-_-

The two chips will be made according to the specs both MS and Ninty want. Money has nothing to do with how good each chip will end up.

Inkwell · « **Reply #10 on:** August 14, 2003, 04:47:38 PM »

Like most companies do when it comes down to hyping a new product is to throw out specs....so if Nintendo or MS have anything similiar they will go back to the drawing board to keep the others on thier toes. So in the end money will start to become the issue.

Uglydot · « **Reply #11 on:** August 14, 2003, 04:59:53 PM »

Well, since ATI didn't actually make the Nint chip set, perhaps the same guys will, but under the new name. Since they were bought after flipper was built, I believe.

BlkPaladin · « **Reply #12 on:** August 14, 2003, 05:27:36 PM »

Accually I don't think Nintendo would care if they recieved the so call "weaker" chip. They usally give the chip maker a long list of demands and if they are met they are happy. And being the most powerful chip will be one of their demands. And even theough they said Nintendo cut off relations earlier in the year they don't have a single article on it.

ThePerm · « **Reply #13 on:** August 14, 2003, 10:10:05 PM »

maybe ati will bargain with them and make them both accept the same chip.

Uglydot · « **Reply #14 on:** August 15, 2003, 06:48:51 AM »

ArtX(california) is actually devoping the Nintendo version like before, most likely. Whlie ATi in Canada is going to do the xbox chip.

rcf84 · « **Reply #15 on:** August 15, 2003, 10:17:34 AM »

More cash for ATi at the end. It shouldnt effect anything overall. Each company has there seperate demands for a chip and ATi will make them gladly.

a4164 · « **Reply #16 on:** August 15, 2003, 01:00:41 PM »

No impact to ATI relationship with Nintendo

ATI already produces chips for Nintendo (news - web sites) Co. Ltd.'s (7974.OS) GameCube under a royalty agreement. Bergman said he did not expect the Microsoft deal to affect its Nintendo relationship and stressed it's not unusual for chip companies to supply products to competing firms.

"We've had a good strong long history with Nintendo and we don't expect any impact...we're comfortable with our relationship with Nintendo and I think we're great partners," he said.

David Orton now CEO of ATI was also the head of ArtX under the N64/Flipper development. The strong ties with Nintendo are still intact. I doubt either Nintendo or MS care that they use a similar VPU from the same company. Its the content that sells consoles, not tech specs.

mouse_clicker · « **Reply #17 on:** August 15, 2003, 02:21:02 PM »

I don't really care that MS is using ATI for the next graphics chip- what *I* think is funny is that MS touted how much more powerful it's Nvidia GeForce 3 thingy was than the Gamecube's ATI Flipper, and then suddenly next generation change to ATI.

ThePerm · « **Reply #18 on:** August 15, 2003, 08:33:29 PM »

i hope the chips are goign to be somewhat similar.....ports

a4164 · « **Reply #19 on:** August 16, 2003, 12:15:51 AM »

Separate Teams working on Xbox and GameCube successor

With the deal, ATI will now apparently design graphics chips for two next-generation consoles, manufactured by Micorosoft and Nintendo. In March, ATI said it was developing technologies for use in future products, also suspected to be a game console. the same month where ATI signed a deal with Intel to design core logic chips and other products for use with Intel's Pentium M mobile processor.

Don't expect the graphics capabilities of future Nintendo and Microsoft products to be exactly the same, however, the ATI spokesman said. "Yes, we have different design teams working on them, with different requirements and different timetables," the spokesman said.

Individual teams are working on the VPU successor to Xbox and GameCube.

manunited4eva22 · « **Reply #20 on:** August 16, 2003, 05:49:40 AM »

Me personally, I would take the artx team over ATi.

Before artx, ati hadn't come anywhere close to taking the top place in graphics cards, 9700Pro was helped out more than a little by ArtX.

Not to say that ATi hasn't learned a lot from ArtX, but hey, it's not the same as the teacher.

mouse_clicker · « **Reply #21 on:** August 16, 2003, 08:53:25 AM »

Funny thing is, the graphics chip for the N5 or whatever will be made pretty much by the same people who did the N64's graphics chip. They talk about it a bit on IGN's latest mailbag, but the president of SGI (who did the N64's graphics chip) left SGI with a good portion of the employees shortly after the N64 was released and formed ArtX. Nintendo then contracted ArtX to make the Flipper for the Gamecube and while that was going on, ATI acquired ArtX. Now it's most likely the ArtX portion of ATI making the chip for Nintendo's next console- crazy how things work out.

Uglydot · « **Reply #22 on:** August 16, 2003, 08:58:04 AM »

Bet that little fact didn't slip out of Nintendo's radar, they do like to form strong business relationships.

Djunknown · « **Reply #23 on:** August 18, 2003, 08:45:18 PM »

Now to work the other angle, what is rival company NVIDIA is handling all this? Early in the year, it was rumored that their relationship with MS was soured, but it was cleared up as false. Now this.

I mentioned waaay back that it was almost like a tag team match between NVIDIA and MS VS ATI and Nintendo. Looks like ATI is playing both fields and may come out the winner! NVIDIA on the other hand gets the screw from Microsoft; that's gotta sting a little...

Unless MS gets the best of both worlds and has NVIDIA and ATI under the same roof. Highly unlikely as those two companies want to grind the other in the dirt.

slacker · « **Reply #24 on:** August 29, 2003, 02:12:22 PM »

This ATI, MS, and Nintendo thing sounds like a conflict of interest for ATI. Granted that 2 separate teams might be working on two different chipsets with different specs, it still doesn't change the possibility that there might be some information and technology sharing between the two teams, intentional or unintentional. I mean, it would be such a waste of resources for ATI to not use advances from the team working on Nintendo's chipset to apply to MS and vice versa. Unless the two next gen systems are architecturally very different, there is bound to be internal leaks to the MS and Nintendo team. Oh well, we'll see how this pans out. But it sure sounds very interesting.

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Author Topic: ATI and Microsoft (Read 9386 times)