No Intel Inside Apple’s Tablet

Rumored as already in production and due out in March, the much-hyped Apple tablet reportedly doesn’t employ Atom architecture. The processor is used in netbooks and is believed to live inside HP’s recently unveiled notebook slate. According to people familiar with the matter, Apple is going its own way with the tablet.

Talking about the components said to be comprising the Apple tablet, TheStreet reveals that, “Unfortunately for Intel, it didn't make the cut,” citing Northeast Securities analyst Ashok Kumar. The information is based on conversations with Apple's design manufacturing partners, according to the site. The report adds, “There has been speculation that Intel's new generation of Atom chips was in the running for the slot, but Apple ultimately chose a processor developed by P A Semi, a chip shop Apple acquired two years ago, according to another analyst familiar with the so-called build plan.”

Apple has been long rumored to focus on developing its own chip architecture for an upcoming tablet, justifying the $278-million buyout. This reportedly leaves Intel stuck with Microsoft and Dell, both of which have tablets on the launch pad. “Intel can't be happy sitting on the sidelines as Apple's new product catches on with consumers,” TheStreet outlines, although the company is still the dominant computer-processor supplier.

Multiple reports now claim Apple is set to unveil its elusive, new product at an event scheduled later this month, with the tablet’s launch being slated for March. Gene Munster, an analyst at Piper Jaffray & Co. in Minneapolis, said in a note to clients last week that, “We expect the key differentiator of the device to be its software. Apple's tablet would compete well in the netbook category, even though it would not be a netbook.” The Yerba Buena Center for the Arts is Apple’s favorite venue to unveil new products. Sources are placing the company’s CEO on stage on the 27th for the big announcement. Apple is yet to confirm such developments.