So far, Intel’s success in the computer industry hasn’t really translated to cellular. But, says the company, that will be changing soon. Details are a bit vague at this point, but suffice it to say, computermakers’ favorite chip maker will be gatecrashing the mobile phone party within the next year or two.
Look for a high-end smartphone maker to ship a handset some time next year with “Intel inside,” says Dadi Perlmutter, a VP for Intel's Architecture Group. The technology of note is Intel's 32-nm “Moorestown” platform, which is based on the Atom core.
But Moorestown looks more like a transitional product, says analyst Tony Massimini, of Semico Research. The following year, 2011, is when Intel’s serious entry into mainstream smartphones is expected to happen, with the arrival of “Medfield.” By all accounts, this will be company’s real smartphone product (whatever that means).
Intel's last foray in mobile devices was in PDAs, specifically the XScale chip via HP’s iPAQ PDA line. Now, the company’s in a good position to make a go of it in real honest-to-goodness cell phones, given its strong relationships with Asian OEMs and ODMs. The only hiccup could be Moorestown itself. Some experts think it might be a tough sell to get major European brands like Sony Ericsson interested in it. But if they succeed, there very well could be more phones brandishing the Intel logo in the years to come.
[via PhoneArena]
