Apple Confirms Acquisition of Israeli Flash Memory Firm Anobit [Updated]

[philstubbington]

Largest acquisition ever?

A few websites are suggesting that this is Apple's largest acquisition.

Didn't seem quite right to me (NeXT must have been bigger, surely?) so I checked on http://www.measuringworth.com and it seems like the relative value of the reported $400m paid for NeXT in 1997 ranges from $525m to $697m, against the reported $400m paid for Anobit. So, at the bottom end at least, it's not the biggest.

Just thought someone else might like to know

 

[TMay]

They won't make them, however they may end up designing a lot of custom components. Anobit -- like P.A. Semi and Intrinsity -- is a fabless design firm. The actual manufacturing (fabrication) is handled by someone else.

I'm a tad surprised that Apple hasn't made a move to acquiring Imagination Technologies (who provides the graphics design for their handheld chips), but perhaps there's more competition in that space and such an investment would be a far riskier gamble.

9.5% ownership by Apple.

 

[JHankwitz]

Pretty soon Apple is going to make all their components themselves.

Like Apple, Anobit doesn't make components. All their stuff is contracted out to companies that are experts in their field. Apple doesn't manufacture, they innovate.

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You can have the coolest invention in the history of the world, but you have to start SOMEWHERE with SOMEONE to listen and invest in your company.

That's exactly how Apple got up and running.

 

[bwillwall]

I think this means that apple has a true desire to make all of their products flash based - and only flash based - in the coming years. Hopefully this will mean that we will start to see larger capacities at smaller prices, but I hope that Apple doesn't take a cue from the MB Air and start to install flash memory on the motherboard. Hopefully this isn't another step in Apple's attempt to make a machine that is completely closed for the user.

The MacBook Air has upgradable flash sticks. They did that on purpose so they could have the new smaller standard that can still be upgraded by the user. However if you meen RAM, then I agree.

 

[GenesisST]

He should've known better than to argue with a lawyer (I think you're a lawyer, IIRC).

Totally unrelated and tongue-in-cheek:
I guess lawyers must read these threads, in order to find arguments in those patent battles. I mean, the experts live here, right?

 

[KingJosh]

one step closer to patching up the rumor leaks lol. As soon as Apple makes everything themselves then the competitors will only be able to start developing after official releases from Apple I bet Samsung is hiding under the bed today thinking about hiring some inventors and creatives instead of ex signature forgers

 

[odedia]

Great news for Israel! .

 

[northy124]

I bet Samsung is hiding under the bed today thinking about hiring some inventors and creatives instead of ex signature forgers

What?

Great news for Israel! .

Is it though? did Anobit even produce anything in Israel that is beneficial to the Israeli economy?

 

[KingJosh]

What?

Explanation:

One step closer to having Apple make all their own parts. If that happens the leaked info on rumors and parts would become much less likely. Therefore Samsung would not be able to get to Apple's plans/ideas before Apple did an official release. This would hurt Samsung badly because they wouldn't be able to take Apple's ideas/plans anymore and implement them into their own products. That would shift them back to the early 2000's with their designs and features.

 

[globalhemp]

Solid State Drives (SSD)

Since SSD's use similar technology as Flash memory, ... will this lead to Apple producing their own SSD's? They currently use Toshiba (the inventor of SSD's) SSD drives in built-to-order Macs.

If Apple adopts SSD's, it would be awesome as SSD's significantly increase the I/O speed and being solid-state (no moving parts) makes them less likely to fowl-up your data.

 

[gnasher729]

Explanation:

One step closer to having Apple make all their own parts. If that happens the leaked info on rumors and parts would become much less likely. Therefore Samsung would not be able to get to Apple's plans/ideas before Apple did an official release. This would hurt Samsung badly because they wouldn't be able to take Apple's ideas/plans anymore and implement them into their own products. That would shift them back to the early 2000's with their designs and features.

Nonsense. What Samsung copied was the looks of the iPad. And in order to know the looks of the iPad, all they had to do was to buy one iPad for $499.

 

[MarkCollette]

OWC sells a few expensive replacements for the previous model.

It's kind of annoying that OWC seems to be focusing on speed, instead of having some options that are less expensive and slower but with maximal capacity.

 

[mutantteenager]

Pretty soon Apple is going to make all their components themselves.

Good move Apple.

Umm no. What components to Apple actually make now? And then express that as a percentage total by product!

If they were making all their components in-house that would actually put their products behind their competitors. These companies have specialisations that Apple simply can't replicate or it would be business suicide to try.

They very rarely innovate hardware, they rely on the likes of Intel and Samsung (yes them) to do so, and then implement those technologies into their products.

Apple talking about 'Retina displays' isn't the same as designing and making the component. The same can be said for their 'custom silicon' in the guise of the A4 processor. Revising or implementing someone else's design, and then giving it a cute marketing name isn't the same as making the component.

Them swallowing up the manufacturer usually pushes up the price and stunts competition. It might also see a shining star in the making have it's light duly extinguished, take Shake or FCP for that matter.

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Hopefully this will be the first significant step towards a lasting peace in the Middle East.

Yep, between them Tony Blair and Apple are going to turn that whole region into a massive love in....

 

[sna]

I hope Apple wont prevent the use of other than @apple@ SSD in the near future in their hardware

 

[tigress666]

Go here and read #6. Oh hell, read the whole damn thing. Sounds like you need it.

Except #6 doesn't really refute his story of how MS started. It doesn't even have a good argument to prove its point.

Basically, your article points out, "Apple does it too!" as its main rebuttal of #6 but that doesn't really refute whether MS gets most to all of its stuff by buying out. It does at least point out a few things MS did do in house but it still doesn't do much to prove against the point.

Not that I'm arguing one way or the other, but #6 in that article had a pretty weak argument honestly. And saying that apple does it too really doesn't refute whether MS does it or not. Maybe it justifies it, but that's really not the same thing at all.

 

[MarkCollette]

"rebuttal", "refute"? Why argue on the Internet. Go outside and enjoy the day.

 

[odedia]

What?

Is it though? did Anobit even produce anything in Israel that is beneficial to the Israeli economy?

You mean besides employing 500 people, renting offices, paying taxes and making technological breakthroughs? I think those things are more than enough. Israel is a tiny country, we can only have true success in the international economy.