Intel Mulls Branding for Handheld Chips

[Crystal Eitle]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://news.com.com/2100-1041_3-1014468.html?tag=fd_top' target='_blank'>http://news.com.com/2100-1041_3-101...html?tag=fd_top</a><br /><br /></div>"Chipmaking giant Intel is considering the creation of a separate consumer brand for processors used in portable devices as it battles Motorola for market and mind share. Intel's past marketing efforts helped establish the company as the leader in the PC chip business, in part by subsidizing the costs of each PC manufacturer's advertisements if the manufacturer used the right Intel logo and Intel's familiar jingle. Offering advertising subsidies to handheld manufacturers could prove prohibitive because the processors for such devices typically cost significantly less than those used in PCs and servers. The company's high-end 400MHz Intel PXA255 chip for handhelds sells for $39.20 apiece in 10,000-unit volumes. By contrast, Intel's PC processors range in price from $74 to $725, and its server chips can cost more than $4,000. <br /><br />But the handheld market may be even more amenable to branding efforts than was the PC market, according to a customer of Intel's handheld chips. 'The impact of an ingredient brand might be more powerful for a handheld device simply because they are smaller than a PC and more personal,' said Ken Wirt, a senior vice president of sales and marketing at Palm, the market share leader in the handheld arena. Wirt acknowledged that margins for handheld devices are thinner than those for PCs, but added that the volume potential could be higher. 'This is a market that is just getting going,' said Wirt. Handheld innovator Jeff Hawkins went so far as to predict that desktop and notebook PCs eventually will become accessories to combo cell phone organizers."<br /><br />That ubiquitous Intel Inside jingle... I can hear it now... "do doo do doo!" It'll be interesting to see where Intel takes its branding for handheld chips; could this mean more visibility (in terms of advertising) for Pocket PCs?

[Ed Hansberry]

But the name "Iomir" ???

Yuck....

[Sslixtis]

Iomir? I wonder what the joke is? It has to be some inside joke, no one could just come up with something that lame for NO reason.

:roll:

[retrogamer]

First of all, I am not of those microsoft or intel haters. I am sure those who do have a good reason given how microsoft and intel try to crush their smaller competitors.

I have been a reader of pocketpcthoughts.com for a long time, and I have been a MS CE user since WinCE 1.0.

I am a little tired of all the Microsoft, Intel "news", or how Palm is going down and how pocket pc is winning.. This site is more and more like a MS, Intel public relations broadcaster. It's not like we haven't heard enough of those. They are not news to me. I see them everywhere.

I would really hope to see some INDEPENDENT reporting of all the new innovations in handheld devices, GPS applications, gadgets of the future, applications of the future. Whether they are from MS or Intel doesn't matter.

Instead what I see here are all MS, Intel stuff. How about some stuff we normally don't hear about? Like AMD's new MIPS processor with WLAN integrated. This one may not succeed commercially, but at least it's interesting to hear what else is out there.

There are too many sites like this. nVida vs ATI, PocketPC vs Palm, AMD vs Intel.. I don't understand why people like to take sides in technology? What is the point?? Just to become another volunteer PR guy for some big corporation?

[TawnerX]

yeah, but Iomir?

It sounds like nasty milkshake or Russian space food.

Celeron is bad enough, now we have to deal with Iomir??!!!

[Sslixtis]

First of all, I am not of those microsoft or intel haters. I am sure those who do have a good reason given how microsoft and intel try to crush their smaller competitors.

I have been a reader of pocketpcthoughts.com for a long time, and I have been a MS CE user since WinCE 1.0.

I am a little tired of all the Microsoft, Intel "news", or how Palm is going down and how pocket pc is winning.. This site is more and more like a MS, Intel public relations broadcaster. It's not like we haven't heard enough of those. They are not news to me. I see them everywhere.

I would really hope to see some INDEPENDENT reporting of all the new innovations in handheld devices, GPS applications, gadgets of the future, applications of the future. Whether they are from MS or Intel doesn't matter.

Instead what I see here are all MS, Intel stuff. How about some stuff we normally don't hear about? Like AMD's new MIPS processor with WLAN integrated. This one may not succeed commercially, but at least it's interesting to hear what else is out there.

There are too many sites like this. nVida vs ATI, PocketPC vs Palm, AMD vs Intel.. I don't understand why people like to take sides in technology? What is the point?? Just to become another volunteer PR guy for some big corporation?

I disagree with virtually everything you said but even if I didn't what was your point? If you don't like it here leave, and please take the name Iomir with you! Yuck! :lol:

[ctmagnus]

If you don't like it here leave, and please take the name Iomir with you! Yuck! :lol:

Leave? (S)he just joined! One whole post so far! Regardless of how long thay've been reading.

And Boromir would have been a much better name than Iomir.

:pukeface2:

[Crystal Eitle]

And Boromir would have been a much better name than Iomir.
Steve C is going to :bangin: me for taking this off-topic again, but I was thinking the same thing - sounds like it should be a brother to Boromir or Faramir.

(More LOTR stuff, in case anyone's wondering!)

[Janak Parekh]

I would really hope to see some INDEPENDENT reporting of all the new innovations in handheld devices, GPS applications, gadgets of the future, applications of the future. Whether they are from MS or Intel doesn't matter.
Just to reinforce what others have said: you're looking for independent content on the wrong site. The site's name is "Pocket PC Thoughts". We clearly state our bias -- on an opinion site. We also try to cover other things that interest us, but this site is, and will remain, a site mostly about Pocket PCs.

There are a million different mobile sites out there. I'm glad you've spent the time to visit our site and check us out, but please understand where we're coming from.

--janak

[Steven Cedrone]

Steve C is going to :bangin: me for taking this off-topic again

Hmmm...

You're just lucky I am having such a hard time even trying to moderate the forums right now. I'll just clean things up on Friday ;-)

Steve

P.S. Stay on topic... :lol:

[Brad Adrian]

Stupid name or not, the question remains: do consumers really care about this kind of branding? Some kinds of branding are definitely critical to selling products and maintaining loyalty, but is this something that consumers lie awake at night wondering about?

I think they'll spend more time wondering what alcohol-induced stupor prompted that name than they will about the chip itself.

[beq]

OT, on a brief read of the article, some Palm executive seems to be giving his opinions on how effective Intel marketing slogans are and that he likes Intel?

I guess Intel != MS WinCE/PPC?

[ctmagnus]

I guess Intel != MS WinCE/PPC?

Newer Palms have Intel processors.

[beq]

Yeah, just curious if Intel values all its chip customers equally?

[Ed Hansberry]

Instead what I see here are all MS, Intel stuff. How about some stuff we normally don't hear about? Like AMD's new MIPS processor with WLAN integrated. This one may not succeed commercially, but at least it's interesting to hear what else is out there.
Because this is Pocket PC Thoughts - daily news, views, rants and raves.

A MIPS processor has nothing to do with Pocket PCs as they only run on ARM processors. This is not a generic handheld site - it is very specific to the Microsoft Pocket PC. So far, Intel has been the big ARM chipmaker for it. TI had their OMAP 720 in the Jornada 928, but that device was killed. :( Samsung now has two ARM processors (203 and 266MHz) in the new HP 1930/1940 series. If you forward us some news you come across on that, we'd happily post about it.

[retrogamer]

There is just NOTHING really new in PocketPC or Palm right now! It is totally unlike the the early days of pocketpc.

A TRUE next generation personal digital assistant device maybe just a few years away. The technologies for these devices are still in research labs.

In a not so distant future, maybe around 2010 or so, PCs will only account a small percentage of all devices people buy. In that era, we will either have big devices, or small devices. Small devices such as PDAs, entertainment set-top box, wireless communicators. Big devices will be the big servers in some facilities, provided to consumers just must like utility.

The small devices will focus on human Input/Ouput with the device. Computing will be done at the big servers. communication network links small devices with big devices..

Microsoft obviously understands this with their push of .NET. However, microsoft's dominance in embedded softwares for the small devices is no way guaranteed.

right now there is just too much EVOLUTION, and VERY LITTLE REVOLUTION!!

New PocketPC with 300, 400 Mhz processors, OS 2003, 2004, .NET, whatever, are just evolutions!! Just like the PC itself. I am still using a 800Mhz machine, and have no plan to get a 2Ghz machine.

THERE IS NOTHING NEW in pocket pc, or PC right now. One word to describe this situation is BOREDOM.

It is because of this, I hope PocketPC thoughts, regardless of its name should put more effort to report NEW technologies we normally don't hear about. Because, in a few years, some new device will come out and replace PocketPC or Palm. By 2010 will anyone still carry a pocket pc??

It is no longer PocketPC vs. Palm. Other than probably some interesting form factor changes, there is NOTHING new!

Unless there are some REAL innovations from Microsoft, their total revenus will eventually go down. No matter how much you spend on marketing, or hiring some people talking up your products, if the products is nothing new, people will not buy it. Marketing is not a cure for boredom.