Laptop One-Upmanship As Intel and AMD Jostle

By Laurie J. Flynn

The fierce rivalry between the chip makers Intel and Advanced Micro Devices is heating up as both companies claim superiority in technology used for notebook computers. On Wednesday, Intel introduced an upgrade to its popular Centrino chip set for notebook computers that it says is far more energy-efficient, uses a faster processor and features much-improved graphics.

The new chip set, which Intel called Santa Rosa while it was under development, also supports a new version of Wi-Fi that executives say can be five times as fast as the current version and can communicate over twice the distance.

Last week, AMD held its own news conference here to introduce its Turion notebook processor’s new features and a branding campaign with the theme “Better by Design.” Among other things, the new AMD notebook technology offers improved graphics – which executives say stems from the company’s acquisition of the graphics developer ATI last year – and longer battery life. Later this month, AMD is expected to announce further improvements to its notebook offerings that will be introduced at the end of the year.

Intel’s original Centrino chip set, introduced for notebook computers four years ago, helped popularize wireless communications. While the company has upgraded Centrino nearly every year since, it considers the latest new version a vast leap in performance.

“Its breakthrough performance meets energy conservation,” said Mooly Eden, an Intel vice president and general manager of mobile products.

With the new Centrino, Intel “moves the mobile platform forward another notch,” said Nathan Brookwood, founder and principal analyst at Insight64, a research and consulting company in Saratoga, California.

AMD offered fewer details about its long-term strategy for the mobile market, Brookwood said. “AMD attempted to rain on Intel’s parade, but it remains to be seen if it was a storm or a drizzle.”

A significant new feature of Centrino is the optional Turbo Memory, which uses flash memory chips to help notebooks load applications and boot up faster.

Intel’s notebook offerings include two new brands, the Centrino Duo, for consumers, and the Centrino Pro, which has enhanced security and technology management tools and is aimed at business customers. Intel said notebook manufacturers, including Hewlett- Packard, Lenovo and Dell, were building more than 230 new systems using the chip set.

Both Intel and AMD are hoping to stay ahead of the enormous demand for notebook computers, the hottest part of the computer business.

Sales of notebook computers rose 26 percent last year, while desktop systems increased just 2 percent, according to the market research firm IDC. Notebook computers are expected to account for more than half of all computer systems by 2011.

More than two years ago, AMD was first to market dual-core chips, which use multiple processors for faster performance while keeping energy consumption down. As Intel stumbled in getting its dual-core strategy on track, AMD began to gain market share, particularly in the desktop and server markets. Largely because of the strength of the Centrino chip set, Intel has managed to hold on to the notebook market.

In recent quarters, Intel has begun to strike back at its competitor, introducing wave upon wave of dual-core processors. Its share of the overall market increased to 80 percent in the first quarter, from 74 percent in the fourth quarter of 2006. Over the same period, AMD’s share fell to 19 percent, from 26 percent, partly as a result of an inventory glut, according to Mercury Research.

(c) 2007 International Herald Tribune. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.