March 6, 2008
Intel splits the Atom into four
Life begins at 40 goes the saying and Intel yesterday outlined a new life for itself as it celebrates its 40th birthday on July 16th this year.
From mid-year, the company expects to be making major strides with its Silverthorne microprocessor, now branded Atom.
At its analyst day on Wednesday, Paul Otellini, chief executive, outlined how the low-power processor was at the centre of its plans to find new growth and exploit what it views as a $40bn market opportunity by 2011.
It sees four versions of the chip addressing different segments of a new market – for internet-enabled consumer electronics, mobile internet devices (Mids), low-cost PCs it dubs netbooks and the embedded market for smarter machines like ATMs and petrol pumps.
It seems any early fruits of its strategy will come from netbooks, judging by the raging success of Asus’s eee PC.
Sean Maloney, head of sales and marketing, said manufacturers were readying 25 different netbooks using its chips for release mid-year. He described them as suiting the can’t-afford-a-notebook consumer or families looking for a second laptop, as well as appealing to users in emerging markets.
Intel has tried and failed to expand in markets beyond PCs and notebooks before. But netbooks are closer to its core business and Stacy Smith, the new chief financial officer, said the company had not spent huge amounts developing Atom – it reused existing microchip production assets and development had been “really quite inexpensive,” he said.
Mr Otellini said Intel would celebrate its 40th not with a big party or special T-shirt but with its employees giving 1m hours in public service. If all goes well, they will hopefully find time to raise a glass to Atom as well.
