Computex 2011: Intel Announces the Ultrabook

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The tablet market isn’t exactly Intel’s strongest point, but with its latest Ultrabook announcement at Computex 2011, the chipmaker wants to compete on a whole new level, with super-thin ultraportable computer designs.

Intel has announced a new class of ultraportables that deliver both superior portability and long battery life compared to current designs. Dubbed the Ultrabook, Intel’s reference design calls for a thickness of no more than 20 mm or an eighth of an inch. Some manufacturers, like Asus, have come out with prototypes even thinner than this spec, particularly the Asus UX21, which is thinner than the comparable 11-inch MacBook Air.

Intel wants to compete directly against tablets and other ultraportables, and so the Ultrabook design has instant-on functionalities. These will be based on the current Sandy Bridge architecture, and will use Core i5 and i7 processors using a new 22-nanometer manufacturing technology using 3D transistor designs, which will use significantly less power than the current crop of 2D chip designs made with 32-nm fabrication process. Intel has code-named this platform Haswell.

Aside from the Ultrabook announcement, Intel also touted its Medfield platform, intended for smartphones and tablets that run Android Honeycomb. Intel says Ultrabook and Medfield products are likely to hit the market by first half of 2012. Aren’t we all excited?