14 DAY TRIAL // If ultrabooks do become the second coming of netbooks, it will be mainly because Intel stubbornly spurred them on, as well as the companies in a position to make them.
That Intel is working together with PC makers for the development and mass production of ultrabooks is hardly news.
Still, what the Santa Clara, California-based company is now doing goes a bit beyond its prerogatives.
If nothing else, it proves just how serious Intel is about proofing the PC market against tablets. According to Digitimes, Chipzilla has directly intervened in China.
For instance, it has helped InfoVision Optoelectronics (Kunshan) obtain orders from ultrabook vendors like Lenovo and ASUS.
Another company that got help from Intel is Guangdong Goworld, which has started making touch panels for ultrabooks, even though it only used to produce handset versions.
To give an example of what Guangdong Goworld now has to offer, Lenovo is a major client of its new 11.6-inch capacitive touch panel.
Moving on, Intel has cooperated with case maker TongDa Group, leading to orders from Toshiba, ASUS, Lenovo and Dell.
In addition to these three, there are other companies that won support from Intel, which means they are bound to get some assistance of their own soon.
To start off, there is Shenzhen Laibao High-Tech, a maker of touch products for smartphones, tablets and, of course, laptops (ultrabooks and notebooks).
Furthermore, the report mentions panel maker BOE Technology as having made it on the list of Intel ultrabook panel suppliers.
Chipzilla is providing both technological and financial support. It might all seem a bit costly, but the benefits could be massive in the long run. After all, the Chinese market is large and, since it is still a so-called 'emerging” segment, it has room left for molding. All in all, it is an opportunity that Intel couldn't possible ignore.