An AMD press release stated that they started off by responding to market demand for a "Bling" Chip and the road has lead to this - the AU1200. Its special feature is just how cool the processor runs despite being touted as the hottest chip this side of 2004.
Made of pure gold, many critics have said that it will simply be priced out of many PVP (Portable Video Player) manufacturers cost allowances. This is a claim that has been rebuked by one AMD spokesperson - "The Au1200 will retail for just $120 - although this is at the top end of the PVP range we believe the gain in performance makes it worth it. For those who cannot afford $120 we will be lauching a gold plated version at $80 so cheapskates can pretend they have the best - much like we sell AMD64 FX PC box stickers to people running Intel Pentium P90's.
Intels reply was swift and designed to take the shine off AMD's new found glory. "We will be putting into mass production for PVP's a chip codenamed "Platonimator" which features 6 platinum cores on one chip." There are no more details available at this time.
This could well be the start of a price and power war in the PVP market with apple also entering the fray announcing it would be producing a PPC based PVP which will start retailing for far too much (approx $770) and then fall to a little bit less (approx $765) so that apple users can tell people that apple is fantastic for price, service and listening to customers, and, eventually tell people that the iQT (QT = Quicktime) is just as cheap as the competition. iPods have done just this since the 1st generation and have done so spectactularly successfully. The iQT will be released in mid february but as with all apple products, shipping will be slow and demand will far outstrip the very limited supply.
Once again then it seems PC users and OSX users will be assaulted by goods trying to get them to switch from one to the other. Roll on the "Bling."
