New Intel "Haswell" microprocessors may need upgraded power supplies

PC makers may need to bin power supply units to use next-generation Intel microprocessors

Intel's forthcoming Core I "Haswell" microprocessors, expected to be launched in June, may not be compatible with existing power supply units. The news will complicate supply chains for PC makers, as well as individuals building their own PCs.

In order to use the new microprocessors with existing power-supply units, system builders will need to disable the low-power states that Haswell is capable of or purchase specialist power supply units.

According to The Tech Report website, "Haswell's C6/C7 states require a minimum load of 0.05 amps on the 12V2 rail, and some power supplies can't pump out that little juice. Haswell systems powered by incompatible PSUs can run into stability problems".

Furthermore, many power supply makers do not report minimum currents, making it difficult for buyers to ascertain whether they are suitable or not, while Intel's own website lists just 23 compatible models - 19 of them made by Corsair.

Produced on the company's latest 22-nanometre process semiconductor manufacturing equipment, Intel's new Haswell x86-compatible microprocessors are intended to significantly reduce power consumption without compromising performance.

The news comes as new figures suggest that Intel is expanding its presence in the "media tablet" market, which has hitherto been dominated by tablet computers based on ARM designs produced by Samsung, Qualcomm and many others.

According to research from Deutsche Bank analyst Ross Seymore, Intel enjoys a 90 per cent-plus share of the Windows tablet market - with Windows RT based on ARM accounting for the residual 10 per cent - while Windows-based tablets account for 7.5 per cent of the total tablet market, according to recently released figures from box counters Strategy Analytics.

Intel expects its tablet system-on-a-chip (SoC) shipments to double in the current quarter, as it ramps up its latest Atom SoC for Windows 8, as well as "Lexington" for Android.