AMD moves up Ontario ultraportable chips to late 2010
updated 02:30 pm EDT, Mon July 19, 2010
AMD raises suspicions by moving Ontario chips up
AMD during the call discussing its latest results revealed that the company's Ontario ultraportable chip will arrive early. The processor had originally been slated for the first half of 2011 but is now due to arrive in the fall, "ahead of schedule," according to CEO Dirk Meyer. What prompted the accelerated launch wasn't mentioned.
Ontario is built on a smaller, 40 nanometer process and uses AMD's new Bobcat architecture. The dual-core design is not only tuned for lower power but includes a fast DirectX 11 (OpenGL 4.0) integrated graphics and a built-in DDR3 memory controller.
The acceleration is unusual for AMD and may be a reaction to Intel's new ultra-low voltage Core i3, i5 and i7 processors bringing ultraportables down in price. Apple is also believed to be considering AMD for mobile chips and could use it for a thinner but possibly less expensive system such as the MacBook Air. HP has also been one of AMD's largest notebook supporters.
