Could Intel be inside your next iPhone? That’s a possibility as the chipmaking giant is reportedly on the verge of acquiring Infineon, Apple’s sole baseband supplier for the iPhone.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Intel is “close to a deal” to buy Infineon for $2 billion. The possible acquisition is a reminder of the rocky road the two Silicon Valley companies have recently had. Apple decided to go with Intel rival ARM for its smartphones, then acquired chipmakers PA Semi and Intrinisity to build the A4 processor based on the ARM and now used in the iPad and iPhone 4.
In 2008, Intel blasted the iPhone, charging the iconic handset could not fully access the Internet without an Intel-made system. Meanwhile, Intel has sought to get its Atom processor into mobile devices, such as netbooks, requiring little power and selling for lower prices. A plan for Apple to use the Atom in 2008 never materialized as the Cupertino, Calif. company evidently decided to take another direction.
[AppleInsider, WSJ]
