Intel’s worldwide marketing department is gearing up for “MIDs” and “netbooks” with a new brand for the Silverthorne family of chips. Intel has big plans for their smallest and lowest power processor line, now called the Intel Atom processor. It arrives later this year embedded in a boatload of tiny devices.
The Intel Centrino Atom for MID platforms, consists of multiple chips. The processors were previously codenamed Silverthorne and Diamondville. They use the Core 2 Duo instruction set for compatibility with current PC software.
Atom processors based on Silverthorne are aimed at Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs). Atom processors that are based on Diamondville will see duty in low-cost notebooks (known as “netbooks”) and desktop computers (also called “nettops”).
EE Times says Atom is an important new architecture. Just don’t expect it to dethrone ARM in the mobile market segment any time soon.
The Menlow platform is now known as the Intel Centrino Atom platform. It will include an Intel Atom processor, Intel 945GSE graphics chipset and a wireless radio.
Atom processors use Intel’s 45nm, hi-k metal gate technology that allows very low power — from 0.6-2.5 watts — with up to 1.8GHz speeds. By comparison, today’s mainstream mobile Core 2 Duo processors are in the 35-watt range.
In addition to MIDs, Intel believes low-cost, Internet-centric devices, dubbed “netbooks” and “nettops”, will grow substantially. Atom Diamondville processors are designed to meet that need. Diamondville processors run 4 to 8 Watts and are designed for fan-less operation. The $300 Eee PC, for example, is based on the earlier Intel Celeron chip.
TNS Media Intelligence reports the chipzilla spent about $100 million on all its U.S. advertising in 2006. Of that, it spent about $17 million or 17 percent on online display advertising.
Historically, Intel has spent roughly 15 to 20 percent of its advertising budget online, and plans to increase spending in the category to 35 to 40 percent in 2008, and 50 percent by 2009, according to Intel Global Media Director Kathleen Malone.
All this is designed to make a simple, compelling brand. I don’t know about you, but I still confuse Centrino with Celeron.
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