They have a road map to follow of course, the majority if not all 10nm products are in 2019 (assuming CNL is axed), there is no point in releasing a non competitive product that will not sell simply coz "we wuz 10nm now". CNL Y/U will get killed by KBL R, CFL U and WHL U... Instead of releasing a product they could show us a few wafers, and chips that work + a yield curve/learning graph like they did with their 14nm
They had roadmaps showing multiple 10nm products in 2017/2018 but they didn't follow those.
Regardless, Intel is still a technology company, no matter what other ideas are floating around inside BK's head. They have to continue updating products to stay relevant to the market. OEMs/system integrators are only going to put up with respins/nospins for so long. Big-boy buyers shopping through ODMs had Skylake server products months before us plebs got to see it . . . what is Intel offering them now?
Google: So what have you got for us this time? Skylake is getting long in the tooth.
BK: How 'bout Skylake on 14nm++? This time with more Optane!
Google: So about those discounts . . .
The whole point to releasing 10nm
now is to remain relevant to the market. 14nm++ is nice, but the market is moving forward with or without Intel. That 10nm CNL Y/U is going to get "killed" by 14nm+/++ products is Intel's fault. It's even worse that I still can't see how CLU U or WHL U really improve Intel's mobile offerings. At least KBL mobile products improved battery life and/or max turbo some over SKL mobile products.
It's a bad excuse and you know it.
It actually looks worse than "10nm is messed up so we have to wait to 2019 to use it". Maybe not to investors who can be duped, but anyone with a long-term interest in Intel's market position can see that voluntarily avoiding 10nm on a cost basis is suicidal.
In any case, you know it's bad when the excuse is worse than the truth.