Intel Corp. has begun to manufacture code-named Oak Trail chip sets for ultra-thin netbooks and tablets, according to a market rumour, which is most likely to be correct since the world's largest maker of chips intends to start revenue shipments of its new platform early in 2011.

Intel Oak Trail platform utilizes Lincroft system-on-chip, which integrates Atom processor with up to 1.90GHz clock-speed, Intel GMA 600 graphics core (OpenGL ES 2.0, OpenGL 2.1, OpenVG 1.1, 400MHz), 32-bit LPDDR1/DDR2 memory controller and video encode/decode logic onto a single chip, and pairs it with platform controller hub (PCB) code-named Whitney Poin that enables support of Microsoft Windows operating system.

The first Oak Trail set of chips to be released by Intel will be Atom Z670 "Lincroft" SoC and SM35 PCH, reports DigiTimes web-site.

Intel hopes that Oak Trail will not only power ultra-thin netbooks, but will also enable tablets, which are getting popular nowadays. Given that ARM-based SoCs consume less power than almost any x86-based offering, Intel plans to sell its Oak Trail set of chips for $25 with MeeGo operating system, something that should make the bundles more competitive. Naturally, the vast majority of consumers will prefer Windows 7 operating system on an Intel-powered slate and manufacturers do understand that. Therefore, it is unlikely that actual Atom-based tablets, which will use Windows 7 in the majority of cases, will be considerably less expensive than Android-based or iOS-based devices.

Intel did not comment on the news-story.

Tags: Intel, Oak Trail, Moorestown, Lincroft