In recent quarters, the semiconductor firm, Intel Corp, has put increased efforts in to processor efficiency, an area many believe rival AMD has taken the lead. However at this year's Intel Developers Conference, the firm is realigning its focus on performance once again.

The Santa-Clara Calif.-based firm outlined a clear roadmap for the next four years, introducing technology based on even smaller manufacturing processes, and a shift to multi-core solution.

We are likely at an inflection point as the industry moves to support multicore processors, Doug Freedman told clients on Wednesday regarding Intel's announcement. The shift from 2 cores to 4 cores and more is likely to be faster and more easily adopted by the PC ecosystem as more multicore software tools become available.

The company also revealed details of its next mobile platform that will power laptop computers in the near future. The new system, code-named Santa Rosa, will feature high-speed 802.11n wireless networking, 18 times faster than ubiquitous 802.11b networks today.

Robson NAND disk cache technology will also be used in the new system, offering faster turn on times, and quicker restart speeds, promising battery extending power-savings.

The technology increments are likely significant performance bumps without platform changes - making the transitions faster and smoother for the industry, Freedman concluded.

Electronics Intel