Ivy Bridge chips pushed to 2012, Macs will have to wait
Intel's Sandy Bridge chips, which are ticking inside 2011 MacBook Pro and iMac computers, are all the rage in the chips business at the moment. However, the pundits are already watching closely a next-generation Sandy Bridge successor code-named Ivy Bridge.
Context & Ripple Effects
Intel's Sandy Bridge mobile chip lineup went official in February 2011 and now sits inside the 2011 MacBook Pro and iMac lines, with a further Sandy Bridge refresh of the MacBook Air expected in June. The question hanging over the roadmap is when the successor, code-named Ivy Bridge, actually lands — and reports at the end of May point to a slip into 2012, though that timing remains unconfirmed.
The delay talk lands amid a noisy stretch for the Intel–Apple relationship: an Intel executive has publicly pushed back on claims Apple will build MacBooks on its own chips, while separate unconfirmed reports have Intel weighing manufacturing for non-Intel cores and possibly even ARM parts for Apple. A slower path to Ivy Bridge feeds directly into that debate about how long Apple stays dependent on Intel's cadence.
First-order effects
- Apple's 2011 Mac lineup stays anchored on Sandy Bridge through the year, so buyers holding out for Ivy Bridge graphics and process gains face a wait into 2012 rather than a fall refresh.
- The expected June MacBook Air update leans instead on refreshed ultra-low-voltage Sandy Bridge Core i5/i7 parts at 1.7GHz–1.8GHz — leaked but unconfirmed — rather than on the delayed successor.
Second-order effects
- A stretched Sandy Bridge tailwind gives Microsoft's ARM push and other non-Intel alternatives a longer open window in laptops, which is exactly why Intel's software chief argued publicly this month that Windows on ARM will not run legacy apps.
- If Ivy Bridge slips, Intel faces pressure to keep Sandy Bridge pricing competitive through 2011, since Apple and other OEMs have no next-generation part to reset price/performance expectations.
Third-order effects
- Repeated slippage in Intel's tick-tock rhythm strengthens the structural argument — voiced in the ARM-for-Apple rumors, still unconfirmed — that Apple could eventually move Macs off Intel silicon or seek manufacturing flexibility elsewhere.
- For the broader industry, a successor-class delay illustrates the semiconductor capacity lag: process-node transitions slip more often than roadmaps assume, and OEM product cycles increasingly inherit Intel's schedule risk.
The trend: PC makers' release calendars are becoming hostage to Intel's tick-tock execution, sharpening OEM interest in alternative silicon as Intel's roadmap stretches.