Cell 65nm production started

[one]

One, do you have a link to the Toshiba info about Cell for consumer devices ? I'd like to find out more.

No, nothing other than the Goto article.

 

[Capeta]

PPE is not an essential part of Cell. They can use MIPS or whatever they want.

Of course, I assumed they were removing the PPE and not replace it with something else. It would be interesting if they replaced the PPE with a MIPS core.

 

[SPM]

You don't just shrink die sizes without thought. You need to produce a whole new set of masks, which is cost dependant (GPUs sell less, therefore mask is a significant cost, so you don't make the thing as quick)! As Cell is intended to be used in everything from your fridge to your PS3, it is economical because the cost can be amortized over all devices.

Also, on a non-economical view, shrinking components does introduce electrical considerations...

Also depends on the volume of production. Low production number items can be more economical on 90nm because the fixed overheads are high compared to unit cost, while large volume items are the opposite. Therefore if there is strong demand for 65nm and low demand for 90nm, then it may be more economical to place orders for smaller volumes with 90nm fab plants who will give you a low price even for small volumes due to lack of customers.