The Channel Wire

July 10, 2009

Will Google's proposed Chrome operating system for handsets, smartphones and so-called "smartbooks" tear a hole in Intel's long-term plans to replace ARM-based processors with its own x86 chips in those devices? Intel spent Thursday and Friday swatting away such speculation as fast as it cropped up, but ARM manufacturer Qualcomm thinks Intel's critics are on to something.

"I guess, when I think about the challenge for Intel, it's not a question of, 'Are there smart people at Intel?' Of course there are," said Rob Chandhok, vice president of software strategy at San Diego, Calif.-based Qualcomm. "It's, 'Do they have the experience necessary to deliver solutions in this space?'"

Chandhok said this week's Chrome announcement hammered home Google's "broader commitment" to delivering Web-based services on mobile devices that predominantly feature ARM-based hardware -- such as nascent product categories like the Qualcomm Snapdragon-based smartbook, roughly defined as a midway point between a mobile Internet device (MID) and a netbook.

Industry analysts on Thursday speculated that Mountain View, Calif.-based Google's Chrome OS could initially boost ARM manufacturers' fortunes if smartbooks and similar mobile form factors really take off with the emergence of a dynamic new software delivery alternative to x86-tuned operating systems, most notably Microsoft Windows.

If Google is actually able to deliver a PC-like experience on ARM-based devices, the reasoning goes, Intel could lose an inherent advantage over companies like Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, Freescale, Nvidia, Marvell and Broadcom.

Chandhok, unsurprisingly, agrees. He said a healthy Google Chrome ecosystem would naturally leverage the ARM architecture's advantages for mobile computing, most notably longer battery life, and Qualcomm's ability to deliver uninterrupted wireless connectivity.

"We think there's going to be a lot of experimentation in smartbooks and similar products. The keys will be to deliver products that are always connected to the Internet, have a long battery life, and are very light and portable," he said.

What about Intel's oft-repeated mantra that the Internet itself was designed for x86-based computers, making the Santa Clara, Calif.-based company's products the best fit for any mobile device that's connected to the Net?

"As an engineer and a software guy, I'm truly puzzled by that idea," Chandhok said. "The quality of the Web experience is far more driven by a fully integrated system rather than the processor, or you know, just an instruction set."