Why the ARM architecture is shaped the way it is

Peter Clarke, EETimes
11/26/2012 9:25 AM EST

It is arguable that ARM and Intel, the two companies locked in head-to-head processor competition, represent two different poles and philosophies.

ARM is modestly British while Intel is brashly American. Intel's chips have been dominant in personal computers for decades while ARM's architecture has been market leader in cellphones and smartphones. ARM is skilled at low power and power efficiency and is trying to move up to higher performance. Intel has always pursued performance but is now working to offer low power versions of its microprocessors. Intel is an integrated device maker. ARM does not even sell chips – but licenses out its processor architecture and circuit designs to semiconductor partners.

To understand why the ARM architecture and culture is shaped the way it is and is different to processor trailblazer Intel, let's go back to a time before the formation of ARM; to Cambridge, England in the mid-to-late 1970s, in the early days of EE Times.

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