New processors from Intel highlight technology lead over rival AMD

New chips from Intel highlight its lead over AMD

SAN FRANCISCO — Intel Corp. is rolling out new computer chips Thursday that highlight the company’s lead over Advanced Micro Devices Inc. in shrinking the circuitry inside its processors.

Condensing the tiny parts of a chip is critical for adding features and reducing costs. Consumers see the difference in better performance and lower computer prices.

Intel’s new Core chips, being unveiled at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, feature parts whose average width is 32 nanometers, or 32 billionths of a meter. Other upgrades include features to save energy and help speed graphics processing.

AMD’s 32-nanometer chips won’t appear in personal computers until 2011. It has argued that circuitry size isn’t as important as performance and graphics.