Transmeta promises big name manufacturing deals

Start-up microprocessor firm Transmeta plans to announce details of deals with a number of big-name US and Japanese manufacturers to produce power-saving laptops and Internet devices, according to British press reports Monday.

This announcement scheduled for the end of June, could result in a period of fierce competition between Transmeta, Intel and other mobile processor manufacturers experts believe. Intel is also expected to launch mobile chips designed to compete with Transmeta at the end of June.

Real deals with manufacturers will substantiate Transmeta's claims that its low-power mobile Crusoe chips can revolutionise the world of mobile computing analysts say.

One of the greatest challenges for computer manufacturers is to reduce power consumption and prolong battery life. Transmeta's Crusoe chips are said to combine a simple low-power architecture with a layer of "code-morphing software" to achieve high performance on conventional PC applications and exceptionally low power consumption.

When Transmeta announced its chip after much secrecy and hype in January it was heralded as a fundamental breakthrough in this area, although the technology has yet to be independently tested.

Gateway's announcement yesterday that Transmeta would supply chips for their Web pad Internet appliances generated a lot of hoo-ha about the decline of the Wintel duopoly. Go with Jesse Berst to read the news comment at AnchorDesk UK.

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