Malaysia seen as good market for `Sandy Bridge'

Hamisah Hamid
New Straits Times
01-03-2011
Malaysia seen as good market for `Sandy Bridge'
Byline: Hamisah Hamid
Edition: Main/Lifestyle
Section: Business Times
Type: Company

MALAYSIA, which has surpassed its 50 per cent broadband pene- tration target earlier than projected, is expected to provide a good end-user market for the soon-to-be launched Intel's next-generation family of microprocessors codenamed Sandy Bridge.

Intel Semiconductor Ltd vice-president and general manager (Asia Pacific) Navin Shenoy said Sandy Bridge will transform computers and make them faster with various capabilities.
"We will launch in Malaysia at the same time as in the US. The whole eco-system is ready," he said, adding that Sandy Bridge will be officially unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in the US on Wednesday.

Sandy Bridge, Intel's second-generation core processor family, will power the latest desktop computers, laptops and servers.

The 32-nanometre processor's micro architecture will deliver enhanced visual features including high-definition video, stereoscopic 3D, mainstream gaming, multi-tasking, online socialising and multimedia.

Speaking to Business Times in Kuala Lumpur recently, Navin said the shipment of Sandy Bridge was done in the previous quarter, while the products will hit the market in the first quarter of this year.

"Our partners are excited as well," he said.

He said developments in Malaysia will contribute positively to Intel business.

"Malaysia continues to lead in technology such as WiMAX. Things look very good ... I'm pleased at where we stand," he added.

Navin sees greater deployment of information communication technology (ICT) as Malaysia embarks on high-income strategies.

"As the ICT increases, Intel's investment in Malaysia will also increase," he said.

Navin said within Asia, Intel hires the most employees and spends the highest investments in Malaysia.

The US-based technology giant has invested about US$4 billion (RM12.32 billion) for more than 30 years in Malaysia.

"Malaysia is a good place to invest, not only in manufacturing but also research and development," he said, adding that Intel has always considered more investment in the country.

Navin said the Asian region, which is growing rapidly, is an important market for Intel.

In the second quarter of 2010, the electronic giant reported 55 per cent increase in revenue in Asia.

He expects Intel's growth momentum in Asia to continue, driven by expansion in emerging markets, mobile computing notebooks and smart phones, and the growth of the Internet, especially broadband infrastructure.

He noted that personal computer (PC) growth in Asia is expected to be more than 20 per cent in 2011, compared with an 18 per cent global growth.

In Malaysia, PC growth is expected to be as high as 40 per cent, mainly due to government programmes.

(Copyright 2011)