SAN FRANCISCO (CNN/Money) -
Most of the news last week in tech circles centered on one company, Intel, and specifically its new Centrino laptop processor package. The company is pushing the Centrino heavily: It takes the first Intel chip built from the ground up for wireless applications and combines it with a new chipset and a wireless network connection receiver.
It's a big deal. According to reports, Intel (INTC: Research, Estimates) is spending $300 million to market the offering, and has even created a new logo that looks as though it was lifted from Microsoft's MSN group.
As impressive as Intel's offering might be technologically, the company's marketing department will have its work cut out for it figuring out how to sell the thing. Poking through executive statements and press releases, it's hard to tell what "key message" is being pushed to consumers.
In the past, most new Intel chip announcements and subsequent marketing campaigns could fit into one of two categories: "This chip is faster" or "This chip is cheaper." But with the Centrino launch, Intel finds itself with a tough message to convey. "It's the first time Intel has pushed an [applications] platform rather than a processor," says Martin Reynolds, an analyst with Gartner Group.
One of the major advantages touted by Intel is the product's longer battery life. But that's a tricky proposition to market for a couple of reasons. First, independent lab tests rarely return the kinds of battery life results boasted by vendors.
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At press time I could find test results only on TomsHardware.com, which reported that Centrino laptops last 25 percent longer than non-Centrino laptops. That's a decent gain, but with individual consumers' usage varying so wildly (some use notebooks to watch DVDs -- a battery hog -- while others simply poke around on a word processor), it's a hard target for which to aim.
Another battery hog application is wireless connections. Running the wireless radio component is a big drain on power, and wireless connectivity is the No. 1 message that Intel is pegging to Centrino. Touting battery life while at the same time pushing wireless connectivity is a tricky dance.
That's not the only tricky dance Intel is conducting. Wireless hotspots are springing up at a good clip, but they aren't nearly as ubiquitous as some marketers would have you believe. Anyone who thinks they'll get a high-speed wireless connection simply by turning on a "Centrino Inside" notebook is in for a shock -- and a disappointment. To its credit, Intel realizes this and is investing $150 million in four separate wireless companies, three of which are focused on increasing wireless coverage in the United States.
From a corporate perspective, of course, Intel needs to grab market share from current wireless radio chip manufacturers Broadcom (BRCM: Research, Estimates) and Intersil -- Intersil currently owns nearly half of the wireless radio market. Considering Intel's strong relationships with hardware manufacturers and dominant position in providing chips for notebooks, the Centrino bundle of wireless technology with the Intel chip could spell trouble for the two competitors.
But getting notebook manufacturers to sign up for Centrino hasn't been a sure thing thus far. When Intel announced its new product on March 12, it already had deals with big names such as IBM (IBM: Research, Estimates) and Acer. But it's unclear just how many of those partnerships will result in "Centrino Inside" appearing on mainstream products.
"Not all of the announcements will be for high-volume products," says Mario Morales, an analyst with Intel. "That will take some time." This is because most of the major laptop manufacturers have existing partnerships with leading wireless chip manufacturers.
And since Intel is bundling that technology with its new processor chip, manufacturers must sacrifice some design and supplier freedom if they want the Intel solution. "You're stuck with one supplier," Morales says.
By targeting an application instead of a speed or cost for its new chip, Intel enters into a brave new world, one in which its success is far from guaranteed.
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