As you may have heard, AMD has purchased ATI. While this merger will possibly lead the way for AMD based graphic cores and other great things, I tend to see this as a potential problem for the tech industry as a whole; particularly people who build their own computers. See, Intel has pulled the license for ATI-based motherboards. While this says nothing for ATI graphics cards, it sure shows what direction Intel is heading. This sets the scene for some very interesting options which are most likely going to change what parts are in our computers forever.

An Intel/Nvidia Partnership

If I was Intel right now, I’d want to make sure I have a good graphics solution for the higher end markets. Sure, Intel has their Graphics Media Acceleration technology, but that is nowhere near as powerful as a dedicated graphics card. So, if I was in Intel’s shoes, I would be making sure that Nvidia is on our side. If Nvidia falls to Intel’s side, this can cause a major problem for AMD. All of AMD’s high end motherboards are based on Nvidia’s nForce chipset. So, if Intel would decided to stop making AMD versions of those boards, AMD would be without a high end motherboard. While this certainly wouldn’t put AMD out of the race, it would cause them to have to pull some resources together quickly to make up for that gap.

This scenario would also lead to a fairly polarized market. If you want an Intel machine, you have to go with Nvidia graphics. If you want an AMD machine, ATI is your only option. This won’t be fun for people who love to build their own machines. Choices would be limited, and would take away the fun of mixing and matching components to build the ultimate gaming machine.

An AMD/ATI/Nvidia Partnership

While this next scenario may be a little unlikely, I think it’s a possibility. Since AMD and Nvidia have worked together in the past, AMD may be able to keep Nvidia on their side. This would insure that AMD has great motherboards and would give AMD users a choice in graphics cards. This would also cause a major problem for Intel. Intel would either have to give in to the competitor and allow their graphics cards to work with Intel CPUs, or Intel would be completely out of the high end market. It would take Intel years to mature their GMA technology to the likes of ATI and Nvidia, causing massive loses in sales. Sure, Dell might still be buying Intel CPUs with integrated graphics, but anyone smart enough to want some performance out of their computer will go with AMD.

What About Apple?

And this brings us to another interesting matter, Apple. As I’m sure you know, Apple has been sleeping with Intel. However, Apple has also been sleeping with ATI most of the time. Depending on how deep the Apple-Intel relationship is, Intel may want Apple to stop using ATI graphics cards. This would essentially force Apple to use Nvidia cards for their higher end systems, something I’m sure Apple wasn’t planning for with the switch to Intel. I doubt Apple would put up a fight with Intel, but it certainly wouldn’t get the Apple-Intel partnership off to a great start.

Conclusions

If you were able to follow what I was saying, you’ll see that this AMD-ATI partnership may have a bigger effect than meets the eye. Of course, nothing may happen also, other than AMD CPUs and ATI graphics cards possibly getting better by using each other’s technology. I for one hope that things can remain peaceful between Intel and AMD, because if things don’t play out well, consumes will be screwed. Let’s just hope for the best.