Intel isn't exactly the most popular chipmaker for smartphones, but they'd love to change that in the future. And Windows Phone could be just the platform to do that away, according to the president of Intel's Mobile Communications Group.
Before you get too excited (or disgusted, depending on how you feel about Intel), Eul says the time isn't quite right to enter the market. “We would be [interested] when we see that this market has a good chance to return our money that we have invested into this,” he explained to IDG, during an interview at Taiwan's Computex trade show.
Right now most of Intel powered smartphones are running Android, which Eul said was where the “money is,” while they're also 'engaged' with Tizen, a Linux-based OS that's also being backed by Samsung. But that hasn't stopped Intel from looking ahead, and they're ready to provide for Windows Phone devices if the market matures enough.
“Our roadmap has devices that can support [Windows Phone],” he explained. “The hooks for doing that [are] there.” But why would anyone want a smartphone powered by an energy hog like the Intel Atom? Eul says those concerns are put to rest pretty soon after someone actually tries out one of the devices.
In the meantime, Intel has several Atom chips aimed at the smartphone market on its roadmap, including next year's Merrifield, a high-performance chip made using a 22-nanometer process. Who knows, maybe we'll be seeing Windows Phones adorned with 'Intel Inside' stickers before too long.
Source: ComputerWorld
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