Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD): The Tech Giant Powers the Heart of the Next Console Generation

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE:AMD) isn’t joking when it comes to a turnaround. I expected the company to sit on its hands and have success come to it. Sarcasm aside, I’m surprised that Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE:AMD)’s good news came from winning a place in the Playstation 4 and the Xbox 720. I’m even more surprised that it will utilize a Radeon GPU instead of something from NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA). As someone who thinks that Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE:AMD) has massive turnaround potential, while also believing NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) has been stuck where it is for too long, I’m in a bind. NVIDIA is in the PS3, and I’m really very shocked that Radeon will be in both the Playstation 4 and the Xbox 720.

Traditional processors are driving AMD higher.
Really?

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE:AMD) has positive news, and it’s coming from the processor side, which is surprising. I knew the graphics side was doing well, but I wasn’t expecting something like this. It’s fairly good news, and Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE:AMD) investors have something to cheer about. It’s not really known what this will mean for the company, financially, but it probably won’t hurt. NVIDIA seems to have passed on the PS4 due to margins. Sony wants to keep cost as low as possible, considering that the PS3 was an epic money-loser on hardware, even compared to other consoles.

The development is a good one, but the next console generation is going to be more fractured than ever. I feel like PC gaming might make something of a resurgence. The next-gen consoles will be using off-the-shelf components, which will make them high-end computers. This is done to make it easier on developers, who will find it easy to create games to run on those systems, as well as port them to other systems and the PC. On top of all of this, Valve’s Steam platform will also probably make an appearance on the consoles. Consoles will see increased competition from the Ouya or the Steam Box from Valve.

The PC-like architecture is good news for traditional processors, like those manufactured by Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE:AMD), because it means there are more places for them to be used. Devices that are plugged into the wall don’t need ARM-based chips because power isn’t an issue. I had suggested that AMD might want to call it quits on processors. Instead, it scores a big win in that very area, and the kicker bonus is getting in with the Radeon GPUs. The heart of the next console generation will be powered by AMD, which is a far cry from calling it quits, even if margins are sub-par.