Intel lands important mobile chip deal with Samsung

Samsung Electronics has announced it would use an Intel processor in the latest model of its popular Galaxy tablets, an important breakthrough for the world's biggest chipmaker by revenues in its quest to challenge the dominance of Arm-based chips in mobile devices.

Samsung’s 10.1in Galaxy Tab 3, expected to go on sale this month, will be the first time the South Korean company has used Intel chips in its tablet computers. Previous versions of the Galaxy Tab used chips that are based on Arm Holdings’ designs.

The move will provide a boost for new Intel chief executive Brian Krzanich, who took the helm last month. He admitted to shareholders that "we were slow to the mobile market" and promised aggressive action to address this error.

Intel has come under pressure to develop a strong presence in the market for mobile application processors, but it has made little progress so far partly because Arm-based chips were far more energy-efficient.

Jasmeet Chadha, an analyst at Sanford C Bernstein, said that the contract was the single most important to date in Intel's mobile business. – (Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2013)