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The problem with your "mix and match" idea is that it's hugely expense to create masks for chip design, even for chips that simple compositions of predesigned c
by not2b 5y ago
The problem with your "mix and match" idea is that it's hugely expense to create masks for chip design, even for chips that simple compositions of predesigned cores, memory, and interconnect, and that expense only pays off because the one mask is used to fabricate anywhere from tens of thousands to millions of chips. A custom choice just for you would be very pricy.
We already live in a world where chip designers pick and choose cores and components from any number of companies: processors we all know about, but things like USB3, HDMI, Bluetooth, and many others are often licensed from third parties. But for the numbers to work you've got to make lots of chips to handle the fixed costs.
- monocasa 5y agoDoes anyone have a decent break down of the cost of masks? I've never really gotten a good sense of what's actually COGS of the actual mask set, and how much is NRE costs that's subject to disruption if chip making is commoditized as we get further up the s-curve that is Moore's Law.
- not2b 5y agoWhile it isn't directly applicable, here's a decent analysis of the costs of doing a custom ASIC to replace generic components, should provide an idea. https://www.electronicdesign.com/technologies/embedded-revolution/article/21808278/ensilica-the-economics-of-asics-at-what-point-does-a-custom-soc-become-viable https://www.electronicdesign.com/technologies/embedded-revol...
- not2b 5y agough, typos: "hugely expensive", "even for chips that are simple compositions".