Intel's 64-bit Bay Trail chip arriving on Android tablets in Q2
Intel's Bay Trail chip arriving on Android tablets in Q2 — Intel's quad-core Atom processor will come to Android tablets in the second quarter, CEO Brian Krzanich said Thursday during a quarterly earnings conference call with analysts.
Context & Ripple Effects
Intel has spent two years trying to buy its way into tablets beyond Windows: the checklist for its first Windows 8 tablet designs went public back in April 2012, and by May 2013 a Samsung tablet running an Atom chip showed the design wins were starting to stick. On the September 2013 earnings call, CEO Brian Krzanich tied the strategy together with 14-nanometer parts and predictions of sub-$100 tablets.
The Q2 Android timing announced Thursday on the Q4 call lands against a strained backdrop: Intel beat revenue forecasts at $13.83B but missed on EPS ($0.51 vs. $0.52 expected), plans to cut about 5% of its 107,000-person workforce amid falling PC sales, and shelved opening of its Fab 42 factory in Chandler, Arizona. The story drew same-week pickups from Ars Technica, Engadget, T3 News, and AndroidGuys — unusual breadth for a chip-roadmap item, reflecting how much weight the market puts on Intel's mobile credibility.
First-order effects
- Android tablet makers gain a quad-core x86 option shipping in Q2, giving OEMs like Samsung a second silicon source alongside ARM licensees for the first time at volume.
- Krzanich is committing Intel to fund the tablet push — contra-ARM pricing and engineering support — in the same quarter it announced 5% workforce cuts and a shelved Arizona fab, meaning mobile subsidies now compete directly with cost discipline.
Second-order effects
- ARM chip vendors supplying Android tablets face margin pressure at exactly the entry-level price points where Krzanich has staked the sub-$100 claim.
- Google's Android ecosystem gains leverage over both camps: with x86 credible on Android, OEMs can play Intel against Qualcomm and MediaTek on per-unit pricing.
Third-order effects
- If Bay Trail ships on schedule, the assumption that Android means ARM breaks down, pushing the industry toward architecture-neutral app compatibility and forcing ARM holders to defend on power efficiency rather than ecosystem lock-in.
- Intel's willingness to absorb tablet losses while cutting elsewhere signals a structural bet that mobile volume must replace declining PC revenue — a pattern that will shape how long shareholders tolerate the spend.
The trend: Intel is converting x86 from a Windows-only franchise into a cross-OS challenger to ARM in consumer devices, using subsidized Atom designs as the wedge.