iPhone and the Future of Broadcom

Tuesday, May 1, 2007 | 3 comments

In January, EE Times wrote:

::

We’re not drinking the Apple Kool-Aid, but Jobs and team do seem to get it: It’s not the technology, stupid; it’s the experience. We love engineers, but you shouldn’t need one to make your digital home work. Whatever the quibbles over iPhone’s price and novel touchscreen interface, Apple seems to have the right recipe for the next big thing: simplicity. The iPhone’s single button says it all.

::

Indeed, as Frank outlined, one of the coolest things about the iPhone is the user interface … the redefinition of “gestures”. Thus, the chip vendor with the most at stake in whether consumers accept or reject this attempt, is Broadcom, provider of the touchscreen controller chip.

The jury is definitely out on this issue, and it will be very interesting to watch what happens in the realtime marketplace in a few months. Ofcourse, if the user interface redefinition is a success, then we have implications well beyond just the iPhone:

::

Citing positive feedback through channel checks and saying the company’s touch screen technology may have a far larger market opportunity beyond Apple Inc.’s iPhone, analyst Alex Gauna of UBS Securities LLC Thursday (Jan. 25) upgraded his firm’s rating on Broadcom Corp.’s stock to “buy” from “neutral.”

Gauna said Broadcom’s touch screen controller chip, found in Apple’s recently unveiled iPhone, may have applications in larger screen displays. UBS believes Apple may migrate the technology into other offerings, including iPods, notebooks and Apple’s forthcoming television product, over time, Gauna wrote.

::

Meanwhile, one damper: Braodcom has lost a video iPod piece to Nvidia, which will turn out costly!

Comments

do somebody knows when we get iphone in europe?

Martin Friday, May 4, 2007 at 7:24 AM PT

[…] chip side of the eco-system, and how each are likely to respond (Intel, Samsung, Marvel, Nvidia, Broadcom, ARM, TI, Qualcomm). It is clear, that whichever chip vendor comes up with the minimum power […]

Sramana Mitra on Strategy » Blog Archive » iPhone and the Future : Synthesis Tuesday, May 15, 2007 at 6:12 AM PT

[…] as part of the series on the major players in the iPhone’s component ecosystem. (A related, speculative post about Broadcom written prior to the iPhone’s release may also be worth […]

iPhone24-7.com Anything & Everything iPhone & New Gadgets » Blog Archive » Broadcom’s iPhone Win Should Bring More Business Wednesday, July 11, 2007 at 6:18 AM PT

You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.


Free Updates

Subscribe to feed (learn more)

Or get updates by e-mail:

Recent Comments

  • Sorry if I gave an impression of being anti-corporate (I work in one too!). But you missed the point. Companies sustain through focus on finding ways to improve… Amit on Obama and Outsourcing
  • good perspective... from my experience I would say its partly true and not true.. 1. Frugality: must.. critical for first 30 months, i believe.. 2. Big compan… Nandan on The Path to Entrepreneurship
  • What is free trade for? Is it for Corporations to keep bettering their QoQ or YoY profits on the same ruthless business-model (lacking innovation)? And what do … Amit on Obama and Outsourcing
  • I see outsourcing as an opportunity than a threat and the whole world is a global village recent comment by Obama in tax incentive cut for US companies if they … santhosh on Obama and Outsourcing
  • Very interesting views from people from all walks of American life.As a non-american,I find it very engaging that common people in America are so involved and a… manjeet on Obama and Outsourcing
  • Hi Sramana, Thanks for writing about us. I would like to add a few points about how we are different from the legacy players. 1) Ease of use: Zero install… DD Ganguly on Deal Radar 2008: Dimdim