Awhile ago, I lamented Intel’s mismanagement of the Core 2 Solo brand. Intel got tied up in the Atom craze, and the lack of a chip for bridging-the-gap I think hurt the market. First, UMPCs died a quick death, and then there was nothing in between Atom 270/280 crud and a traditional notebook.
Worse, Core i3, i5, and i7 remain desktop chips, so Core 2 still is at the top of the heap for notebooks. So, why no (modern) Core 2 Solo to bridge the gap?
Intel is finally shipping the Core Solo SU3500 (well, I should say, laptop makers can now ship laptops with Core 2 Solos in them). These new Core 2 Solos are using top-grade Core 2 silicon, so the market is back.
Unfortunately, UMPCs are still dead, and bridge notebooks (yes, I’m coining the term bridge notebooks for bridging netbook and notebook), are just starting to trickle out there.
My advice to notebook makers: Up the graphics, and bridge notebooks will start to challenge the market dominance that has become the MacBook Air.
