AMD post big loss in Q1 2015 | New graphic cards coming in H2 2015

[Erenhardt]

I agree. I've been an AMD enthusiast for a long time and love my 290x but launching a year after the 980 is not acceptable. Look on gaf, about 80% of PC gamers there have 970 or 980. They don't care about paying more. They act like AMD doesn't even exist. 390x could have destroyed the 980 if launched at the right time. But they screwed it up. This company is a sinking ship, gamers don't care about paying way more for Nvidia products, so I might as well switch over.

If you can't beat em, join em. AMD is toast.

IF they don't care about monies they will upgrade as soon as amd releases their card, but will they?

Truth is the don't care about perf/$ when nv have the fastest card. When amd is faster, then suddenly all sorts of silly ratios are invented to support their subpar purchase decision or skipping the best card on the market.

 

[frozentundra123456]

They are not on the ropes, by any definition of the term. You'll be seeing AMD products on the market for years to come unless something catastrophic happens in the future. This report isn't a catastrophe and should not dissuade anyone from purchasing AMD products.

If they're doing a paper launch of the R9 3XX series during Computex, it's likely because they're leaving the whole second quarter to the wolves, and hope for a strong third and fourth quarter to boost investor confidence.

Wow, delaying a new product so you can lose money longer. Now there is a novel business strategy.

 

[njdevilsfan87]

AMD can afford to lose millions, but can't afford to hire a driver team capable of pushing quality software along with the hardware?

AMD is in no position to be matching Nvidia. They need to be better. Not just a few frames per second better, but in everything. With AMD falling further and further behind with each release, I fear we won't be seeing any AMD cards in a few years and they'll be a dedicated to the APU. It feels like Nvidia isn't even trying anymore. And then we'll end up with GPU stagnation just like in the CPU market, unless Intel can step in and compete for compute based purposes. That might be the only thing soon still advancing the dGPU soon.

 

[B-Riz]

Look at the financial tables, specifically Dec 27 2014.

The Enterprise, Embedded and Semi-Custom made big money, and all that tech comes from Computing and Graphics.

They get to develop and sell essentially niche products that trickle down to their new console market.

Of course March 28 2015 looks bad for Computing and Graphics, they are spending money on getting enough product stockpiled for the next GPU release.

And working on the new CPU slated for release next year...

 

[ShintaiDK]

Of course March 28 2015 looks bad for Computing and Graphics, they are spending money on getting enough product stockpiled for the next GPU release.

Thats not how it works. Its revenue. Not inventory or R&D.

Its just a completely collapsed division.

 

[lavaheadache]

I agree with most of your post. But when R9 290/290X launched, they pretty much blew their cred with that stock HSF. I was already waiting for that card but flat out refused to spend a dime on their decision. I decided to wait for custom cards but of course than the bitmine craze blew up and by then the cards were $800+.

There image is definitely shot. Chasing Nvidia with their ceiling climbing hasn't worked for them very well and frankly I think it's chased off more sales than made head turns "oh look, AMD is charging same price as Nvidia, they must be equal!!" Nope.

If 390x launches in September that's 23 months after 290X. WTF, mate!

Surely the heat sink was bad but man that 290x is still pulling hard against the new guys. Glad I still have my Lightning kicking around, it almost gets me to thinking about letting the Z go..... almost. nah.

 

[S.H.O.D.A.N.]

Wow, delaying a new product so you can lose money longer. Now there is a novel business strategy.

It's common practice for companies to withhold major releases from coming out towards the end of a quarter, to keep the positive financial information from being diluted over multiple reports.

 

[thilanliyan]

Surely the heat sink was bad but man that 290x is still pulling hard against the new guys. Glad I still have my Lightning kicking around, it almost gets me to thinking about letting the Z go..... almost. nah.

Yeah, seeing how well a 295x2 for example does currently, I've got zero incentive to upgrade, which is bad for AMD I guess, lol.

 

[Cloudfire777]

AMD can afford to lose millions, but can't afford to hire a driver team capable of pushing quality software along with the hardware?

AMD is in no position to be matching Nvidia. They need to be better. Not just a few frames per second better, but in everything. With AMD falling further and further behind with each release, I fear we won't be seeing any AMD cards in a few years and they'll be a dedicated to the APU. It feels like Nvidia isn't even trying anymore. And then we'll end up with GPU stagnation just like in the CPU market, unless Intel can step in and compete for compute based purposes. That might be the only thing soon still advancing the dGPU soon.

Where does it stop?

• AMD sold their Imageon mobile IP`s to Qualcomm in 2009 due to falling sales. Qualcomm became a huge company and much more worth than AMD today. Ouch!

• AMD sold their stocks in GlobalFoundries in 2012, a move which put they further behind in the CPU race against Intel.

• In 2015 they have seen how big mobile phone market became, so they are licencing out their graphics to other companies.

• AMD announced yesterday that they effectively exiting server market and ending SeaMicro business, a company they aquired in 2012. A move Lisa Su said was to gain more funds for R&D

 

[Cloudfire777]

Imagine this:

R9 390X with HBM1 launch in September
Nvidia out with their first Pascal card in February with HBM2.

Wouldnt have thought this in my wildest dreams in 2012/2013, but here we are, AMD could actually be stuck a generation behind Nvidia from here on out. Yikes

 

[Silverforce11]

Imagine this:

R9 390X with HBM1 launch in September
Nvidia out with their first Pascal card in February with HBM2.

Wouldnt have thought this in my wildest dreams in 2012/2013, but here we are, AMD could actually be stuck a generation behind Nvidia from here on out. Yikes

Who is making Pascal, TSMC? If NV is relying on them, they will be late for 14nm ff that will be incredibly hammered by mobile SOC makers for wafers on a new node, which is likely to be low yield low volume.

Also, it's a smart move by Lisa, AMD lack the funds to be playing a scattershot approach trying to make it in all sectors. They need focus. All their woes have been a poor CPU architecture. It makes their APU push for dominance fail because the stigma of bad CPU performance stick to these products. GPU architecture has been fine, I suspect this delay is due to GF... but ultimately they need to be on GF in the longer term.

Hopefully GF's 14nm with Samsung's help will be on track.

 

[JSt0rm]

AMD can afford to lose millions, but can't afford to hire a driver team capable of pushing quality software along with the hardware?

AMD is in no position to be matching Nvidia. They need to be better. Not just a few frames per second better, but in everything. With AMD falling further and further behind with each release, I fear we won't be seeing any AMD cards in a few years and they'll be a dedicated to the APU. It feels like Nvidia isn't even trying anymore. And then we'll end up with GPU stagnation just like in the CPU market, unless Intel can step in and compete for compute based purposes. That might be the only thing soon still advancing the dGPU soon.

^^ this is why I buy amd video cards only now. Nvidia get a lot and they do a lot but without the competition we will have high prices and low performance.

 

[rgallant]

if amd had no cards to release in 1Q
why did they not re spin the 290x back in nov. that would have kept them in the game.
after the ref. 290x heat sink bs amd [who with any brains would release a great gpu chip with a non tested , non functioning cooler like intel and amd throw in with their cpu's] has not grained any insight into the gpu market or what and when people want to buy gpu's.

it is really sad that they still think it is a waste of time to have any new gpu's be there for a time to market event like for new gen games fuelled by their console chips ,
-it's time to slow down their cpu's and not kill their gpu's lots of gpu $$pie imo

 

[Arachnotronic]

^^ this is why I buy amd video cards only now. Nvidia get a lot and they do a lot but without the competition we will have high prices and low performance.

So...to stave off high prices and low performance, you will buy lower performance parts?

 

[Silverforce11]

So...to stave off high prices and low performance, you will buy lower performance parts?

Technically, AMD is cheaper and faster in their segment. Its only when you get to the top level at 980 and Titan X are they slower.

Though R290X within 10% of 980 for close to half the price is reasonable, wouldn't you say?

 

[tviceman]

Technically, AMD is cheaper and faster in their segment. Its only when you get to the top level at 980 and Titan X are they slower.

Though R290X within 10% of 980 for close to half the price is reasonable, wouldn't you say?

$45 off from being half price according to cheapset r9 290x and cheapest GTX 980 on newegg in USA. But then you have the TDP characteristics of each card, overclocking potential of each card, 980 currently comes with a game bundle that is highly regarded and 290x doesn't come with any games right now. The r9 290x is clearly a better value and the 980 is clearly overpriced, but there are so many tangibles that people who aren't looking for bottom dollar value actually do have a tough choice and, clearly, the market is favoring Nvidia's lineup despite the prices.

 

[Arachnotronic]

$45 off from being half price according to cheapset r9 290x and cheapest GTX 980 on newegg in USA. But then you have the TDP characteristics of each card, overclocking potential of each card, 980 currently comes with a game bundle that is highly regarded and 290x doesn't come with any games right now. The r9 290x is clearly a better value and the 980 is clearly overpriced, but there are so many tangibles that people who aren't looking for bottom dollar value actually do have a tough choice and, clearly, the market is favoring Nvidia's lineup despite the prices.

I think the R290X is a great deal today, but this is only because AMD had to slash prices following the 970/980 releases.

This kind of thing is exactly why AMD's financials aren't so great.

 

[tviceman]

Where does it stop?

• AMD sold their Imageon mobile IP`s to Qualcomm in 2009 due to falling sales. Qualcomm became a huge company and much more worth than AMD today. Ouch!

• AMD sold their stocks in GlobalFoundries in 2012, a move which put they further behind in the CPU race against Intel.

• In 2015 they have seen how big mobile phone market became, so they are licencing out their graphics to other companies.

• AMD announced yesterday that they effectively exiting server market and ending SeaMicro business, a company they aquired in 2012. A move Lisa Su said was to gain more funds for R&D

They are nowhere close to competitive in the CPU space and they've cut their prices so much in the GPU space without any significant gains that they're really at a point where there just isn't much they can do. The average consumer apparently just doesn't want to buy AMD products.

I thought AMD turned a corner when the PS4 and XB1 started selling so well. I think most people thought they would turn that corner. It didn't happen. PS4 and XB1 are no longer keeping them afloat. I don't think AMD makes it out of 2015 the same company that they are right now. I think they're either going to enter bankruptcy restructuring, coming out much more lean and focused (strictly low, to moderate power laptop CPU's and lean mid-range GPU's) or their going to enter bankruptcy liquidation, splitting up and selling off their IP. I don't think any new products, no matter how great, can save them at this point. They are too far buried and have cut too many resources to stay viable.

 

[tviceman]

I think the R290X is a great deal today, but this is only because AMD had to slash prices following the 970/980 releases.

This kind of thing is exactly why AMD's financials aren't so great.

It is a great deal but it still isn't selling. It's a double losing combination when a company cuts prices and still can't sell a product.

 

[desprado]

Technically, AMD is cheaper and faster in their segment. Its only when you get to the top level at 980 and Titan X are they slower.

Though R290X within 10% of 980 for close to half the price is reasonable, wouldn't you say?

If u overclock both R9 290X and GTX 980 to there limits than GTX 980 will be some what 20% to 25% faster than R9 290X.

 

[Silverforce11]

It is a great deal but it still isn't selling. It's a double losing combination when a company cuts prices and still can't sell a product.

It's the same thing as their CPU. You can be slower, but you have to be more power efficient (5800 series). The market will reward that.

You cannot be slower and have poor efficiency, like AMD CPUs have been vs Intel. This is the current situation with Maxwell versus GCN 1.2. Before the arrival of 970/980, AMD was actually doing very well with the R280/290/X. During the mining boom, they didn't make enough cards. After the boom, the R290/X sold well and they gained 3% marketshare over NV in that quarter. Then the 970/980 landed, game over.

Maxwell is a generation leap, AMD needs one to compete. They are late on their next-gen and have to compete with obsolete tech, it's just that simple. Few wants to buy a power hungry card that isn't faster than the competition. That's why around $300, gamers pay extra for the 970, and around $200, they go for the 960. Anything beyond, its 980/Titan X.

Imagine if Fermi was power hungry AND slower than the 5870. It would have been total disaster.

 

[tviceman]

the R290/X sold well and they gained 3% marketshare over NV in that quarter. Then the 970/980 landed, game over.

Did it do that well in sales, though? AMD has consistently been losing market share since Kepler first hit. There may have been temporary small reverses of fortune, but market share has 100% been sliding away from AMD since GK104 first came out in 2012. That is a long time to be consistently losing. The hole is so deep right now. R&D is lower than ever. Workforce cuts happening left and right. Projects and initiatives cancelled before even seeing the light of day. Bigger and more equipped competitors.

The writing is on the wall. AMD is done. $550-600 "mid range" GPU's are here to stay.

 

[casiofx]

If u understand this graph than u dont need to reply me or post.

Tell me, why did you upgraded from 780 Ti to 980 so fast but it's not Titan X SLI right now?

 

[VirtualLarry]

The writing is on the wall. AMD is done. $550-600 "mid range" GPU's are here to stay.

TBH, I don't think that one of those necessarily causes the other. dGPU is slowly dieing, being eaten up from below by IGPs, so in order to fund necessary R&D, with overall volume shrinking (the loss of the highest volume cards, the low-end ones), the price of each dGPU sold must necessarily go up. This would happen with or without AMD competing in the market.

 

[VirtualLarry]

People wont spend More than $500 on a brand like AMD and there image in public.

So "nerd peer pressure" is why AMD is doing so poorly?