The effects of Intel's recent recall of the Grantsdale chipset are being felt up and down the supply chain. Motherboard makers were the first to feel the effects of the recall, but the postponed release of the Grantsdale chipset has now led graphics chipmakers to reassess their summer production strategies.

 

Originally focused on supplying graphics chips for the Grantsdale chipset, graphics chipmakers such as NVIDIA and ATI have redirected summer production toward older chips to meet market demand for the third quarter busy season. Orders designed for adoption with the Grantsdale chipset have been pushed back for at least a month, perhaps, two. ATI's new RV 423 graphics chipset and NVIDIA's NV 42 system-graphics chipset are both included in this plan.

 

With the third quarter busy season quickly approaching, Taiwanese chipset makers, such as VIA and SIS, are receiving more orders from US and Chinese small-to-medium sized assemblers, which has led them to increase outsourcing to wafer fabs in order to keep up with demand. Taiwanese chipset makers are believed to in a position to benefit from the timing of Intel's recall.

 

The delay of the Grantsdale chipset has allowed Taiwanese chipset makers to push their new products onto the market without having to share the stage with chipsets geared toward PCI Express. Players within the testing and packaging industry point to the chipset makers' decision to push up testing and packaging orders that were originally scheduled for late July and early August to mid-July as further evidence of a concerted effort to make the most of Intel's delay.