AMD Readies Sempron Line

The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company, however, stopped short of revealing many details about the Sempron family, saying only in a statement that the chips would "redefine everyday computing for today's value-conscious buyers of desktop and notebook PCs."

In the statement, AMD said its Athlon 64 processors would remain on the market but made no such statement regarding its 32-bit processor lineup.

Earlier this year, AMD rival Intel, Santa Clara, Calif., said it was ditching plans to deliver its next single-core processors in favor of hastening its schedule to deliver dual-core processors to the market. Intel plans to begin shipping some dual-core chips by next year.

Last week, AMD said it too would ship its first dual-core chips next year. Meanwhile, AMD's move to replace its lower-end Duron lineup with the Sempron family was not a surprise to some in the channel.

"There will always be a demand for low end," said David Chang, president of Agama Systems, a system builder in Houston. "When those customers come in on the low end, you can create loyalty," he said, adding that customers eventually can be upgraded to AMD's higher-end products.