Intel's Atom already designed into future iPhone, say reports

LONDON — A version of Intel's Atom processor is already designed into the generation of the Apple iPhone set to follow on from the imminent 3G iPhone, according to Eric Savitz, the west coast editor for Barron's Magazine, who cited JoAnne Feeney, an analyst with FTN Midwest Securities Corp. (Cleeveland Ohio), as his source.

Savitz offered up the snippet in his blog saying that JoAnne Feeney had written in a research note that an Atom-powered iPhone would arrive in 2009 or 2010, most likely based on a processor made using 32-nm manufacturing process technology.

Savitz quoted Feeney as saying the Atom development program is well ahead of schedule," and that this could allow Intel to demo the 32-nm Atom processor at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco in August.

The 3G iPhone will hit the streets on July 11 with a bill of materials (BOM) and assembly cost for the 8-Gbyte version of $173, The main applications processor is believed to be made by Samsung using an ARM processor core, along with baseband, RF chips from Infineon, as was the case for the original iPhone.

Observers have stated that ARM-based processors are more power efficient than those offered by Intel — on the same process manufacturing node. But if Intel can get to next process node sufficiently far ahead of competitors such as Samsung it may be able to persuade Apple to switch architectures. This would be based on the argument that the power consumption from the available devices is roughly equivalent and Intel is prepared to offer a low price to get the win. According to Savitz quoting Feeney Intel's arguments have already succeeded.