Intel held 81 percent of the x86 processor space in the first quarter, while AMD had 18.2 percent, both of which showed little change over the same period in 2010.
Intel
continues to dominate an x86 processor market that is seeing little
fluctuation, according to industry analyst firm Mercury Research.
According
to the numbers released April 25, Intel in the fourth quarter held 81 percent
of the x86 chip market, which covers both PC and server processors. That
compares with the 81.2 percent market share Intel had during the same period
last year, and the 81 percent it garnered in the fourth quarter of 2010.
Advanced
Micro Devices in the first quarter held 18.2 percent market share, essentially
flat over the 18.1 percent in the first quarter 2010. Via Technologies' share
was 0.9 percent, up a tick over 0.7 percent during the same period last year.
Overall,
the market numbers for the first quarter were solid, according to Mercury
analyst Dean McCarron. However, the numbers were somewhat skewed by the fact
that this year, the first quarter entailed 14 weeks; traditionally there are 13
weeks in the quarter, McCarron said in a statement.
For
example, x86 chip revenue in the quarter grew 1.1 percent, which he said was
above the seasonal average of an 8.6 decline. However, when adjusted for a
13-week quarter, the revenue was down 6.2 percent, which is still better than
the seasonal average.
In
addition, unit shipments in the first quarter were up 7.2 percent over the same
period last year, but down 0.4 percent when adjusted for a 13-week quarter.
"This is
the third quarter in a row of significantly below normal year-on-year growth,"
McCarron said in a release. "However, the decline in the yearly comparable
growth appears to have stopped this quarter, hinting at a possible resumption
of on-year growth in the coming quarters of 2011."
Desktop
and mobile client chips saw what he called "modest but positive growth," with
desktop processors growing a bit faster. Shipments of x86 processors for
servers declined, McCarron said.
For the
seventh consecutive quarter, the average selling price for x86 chips grew in
the first quarter, hitting $101 per 1,000 units shipped. That marked the highest
average selling price since the first quarter of 2008.
"Leading
indicators are indicating seasonally normal growth for the second quarter,"
McCarron said in the release. "However, due to the 14-week first quarter,
seasonal growth will result in comparably flat growth expectations for the
second quarter."
The first
quarter was a busy one for both Intel and AMD. At the 2011 Consumer Electronics
Show in January, both chip makers released their latest PC processors. Intel
launched its 2
nd Generation Core
"Sandy
Bridge" chips, while AMD rolled out the first of its
Fusion
APUs (accelerated processing units). Both the Sandy Bridge chips and Fusion
APUs include discrete-level graphics and CPUs on the same piece of silicon.
Intel
also unveiled new server chips, including the high-end x86
Xeon
E7 processors, which offer up to 10 cores.
Print
