Stefan Mileschin

Intel is finally starting to shift its focus to mobile and the chipmaker plans to showcase a dual core, dual graphics Atom platform at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona later this month.

The new platform is based on the Atom Z2430 and it will debut in Android devices, most of which will be mid-range phones aimed at emerging markets. Since Qualcomm is Microsoft's partner of choice and Apple relies on its own chips, Intel can only hope to make inroads in the Android space.

Back at CES Intel announced its next generation processor lineup, including the Lexington-based Atom Z2430 for value smartphones and the Atom Z2580, which is a Clover Trail+ part aimed at the performance market. Both SoCs feature Imagination PowerVR graphics and they are built using Intel's 32nm process.

Intel recently launched the Yolo, its first smartphone based on the Z2430. But the phone is aimed at the African market and it is unlikely to launch elsewhere. Intel says Lexington-based smartphones are aimed at emerging markets in Africa, China, India and Southeast Asia.

Intel is also expected to show off its LTE baseband chip at CES. However, Intel will not have a SoC design with integrated LTE this year. Intel's first LTE enabled SoCs should appear in the first half of 2014. ARM chips will continue to dominate the market through 2013 and Intel's efforts are unlikely to make much of a difference this year and 2014 it's not looking much better, either.

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