Intel at 50: celebrating the past and future of PC

POSTED BY: Lionell Go Macahilig
2018-06-25 15:00:00 PHT

With Intel marking its 50th anniversary next month, Intel took this year's Computex as a perfect opportunity to celebrate one of the company's most important contributions: the PC. In spite of the fact that we are now in the so-called post-PC era and heading to the data-centric era, Intel's Vice President and General Manager of Client Computing Gregory Bryant believes that PC remains crucial in the company's business and sees many possible opportunities ahead.

"At Computex in Taipei, I shared our vision for the future of the PC and introduced a wide range of new technologies that will help us and the broader ecosystem make this future a reality. One that transforms the PC from a simple computer into a platform that can power every person’s greatest contribution," Bryant said in a statement.

New processors

Coinciding with Intel's 50th year, the company is also celebrating the 40th anniversary of Intel's x86 architecture by unveiling the limited edition 8th Generation Intel Core i7-8086K processor, the first Intel processor with a 5.0GHz turbo frequency.

Intel also announced the latest additions to its 8th Generation Intel Core mobile processors: the Amber Lake Y-series and the Whiskey Lake U-series. Offering up to double-digit performance gains and built-in Gigabit Wi-Fi, over 140 new laptops and convertibles powered by these CPUs are anticipated to launch soon. By the end of the year, Intel is set to deliver X-series and S-series processors for desktop PCs. Intel is further accelerating PCs with the launch of the Intel Optane SSD 905P.

Creator PCs

Empowering content creators like animators, audio engineers, designers, photographers, and videographers, Intel is collaborating with Acer, ASUS, Corsair, Dell, HP, MSI, and Twist to come up with Creator PCs. This category of notebooks, desktop PCs, and all-in-ones are optimized for creator workflow, coming with Intel's Core i7 and i9 processors, Optane SSDs, and Thunderbolt 3 technology. Intel also demonstrated innovation through form factor with Lenovo's dual-screen Yoga Book.

5G and power consumption

Preparing consumers for the availability of commercial 5G in their respective countries, Intel is already working with brands like Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, and software giant Microsoft to roll out first 5G-connected mobile devices next year. Locally, this is consistent with Globe's announcement of bringing 5G connectivity to the country by the second quarter in 2019.

Aiming to reduce power consumption, Intel's Low Power Display Technology was demonstrated in a one-watt panel from Sharp and Innolux. With the technology's ability to cut down display consumption by half, Intel is looking forward to see devices boasting additional four to eight hours of video playback or equivalent to up to 28 hours of stamina.

Artificial intelligence

The last but not the least, Intel goes along with the industry in bringing artificial intelligence (AI) to PCs. Intel introduced the AI on PC Developer Program which provides developers with training and tools such as the OpenVINO toolkit and Windows ML, enabling them to maximize hardware resources to unlock AI innovation. Intel and ASUS have joined forces to highlight Project Precog, a convertible dual-screen laptop with smart features. The two technology giants also showed off a new ZenBook Pro which allows developers to use low-power Intel Movidius VPU to generate AI-centric features for apps.