Intel launches salvo at iPhone

 

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By Stuart Turton

Posted on 23 Oct 2008 at 14:07

Intel has taken a swipe at the iPhone, claiming it's not capable of delivering "the full internet" because it uses an ARM processor.

"Any sort of application that requires any horsepower at all and the iPhone struggles," said Intel's vice president of mobility group Shane Wall, speaking at the Intel Developer Forum in Taipei. "If you want to run full internet, you're going to have to run an Intel-based architecture."

"The shortcomings of the iPhone are not because of Apple," added Intel's ultra-mobility ecosystems director Pankaj Kedia magnanimously. "The shortcomings of the iPhone have come from ARM."

The attack follows Apple's decision to ditch Intel's integrated graphics in favour of Nvidia's offering. Although Intel still supplies the processors for the MacBook range, the decision almost certainly rankled a few suits back at Intel headquarters.

Before the insults started flying the two companies had enjoyed a close relationship, following Apple's decision to dump IBM's Power PC chips back in 2006.

The processor company was also responsible for creating a custom Intel Core 2 Duo chip, which reduced the chip's packaging size by 60%, an innovation that made the incredibly svelte MacBook Air possible.