AMD and a Chip Shortage

There is a lot of talk going around about AMD CPU shortages. DailyTech, Ars Technica and Tech Report are a few sources weighing in on the matter.

A shortage for AMD during the critical year end cycle will mean lost sales and potential defections to Intel based machines. However, it is good news for AMD that its offerings have been well received and they have this problem rather than warehouses full of product.

Below are a few out-takes from some articles regarding the shortage. 

Daily Tech- The main reason, according to DiFranco, is that consumer demand is outrunning supply.
"Typically, the channel prefers a lot of inventory in December," DiFranco said. "This year we have seen demand spike earlier than anticipated, and our engineering inventory has been off."

Tech Report- Another factor behind AMD's channel supply problems is notebook demand. DiFranco says notebook sales are "far outpacing every analyst forecast," so much so that AMD is "seeing a lot of inventory movement from desktop to notebook parts." Few system builders sell notebooks, and retailers don't sell many notebook chips, so less of AMD's production is going to the distribution channel. Since channel demand for Athlon 64 X2 processors is also above AMD's expectations, the tight supply is no surprise.

Read the articles at  Ars Technica, Daily Tech and Tech Report.