Intel’s desktop CPU revenue drops 16 percent

The decline in desktop processor sales at Intel continued into the first quarter of this year, with laptop processor sales up just 3 percent. On the other hand, the company’s server division fared much better, growing 19 percent year-on-year.

The decline within the Client Computing Group, which started this year, a merger of the PC Client Group and the Mobile and Communications Group, is mainly attributable to desktop processors. At $7.4 billion, sales for the entire division were 8 percent lower than in the same quarter last year. On the other hand, the average selling price of desktop products increased by 2 percent, limiting the losses somewhat.

Sales of components for laptops grew by 3 percent compared to last year, although it should be noted that the average selling price has decreased by 3 percent. Tablets are doing well, up 45 percent compared to the same quarter last year.

The Data Center Group performed well, just like last year, with revenues of $3.7 billion, 19 percent more than a year earlier. Total volumes increased by 15 percent and the average selling price increased by 5 percent.

At $533 million, the Internet of Things division’s sales were 11 percent more than in the first quarter of 2014, but 10 percent less than in the last quarter. Software and Services revenues were much the same as IoT, at $534 million, 3 percent less than last year.

In recent years, Intel has been trying to focus more and more on mobile processors instead of the desktop variants. The company is gaining a foothold in tablets and now wants to achieve this with smartphones as well. The new mobile processors, the Atom X5 and X7, will be launched in the second quarter of this year. These 14nm chips will, among other things, be found in the upcoming Surface 3. Delivery of the Atom X3 processor, designed for cheap smartphones and tablets, has also started. In addition, more information about Skylake, the upcoming Intel Core architecture, is expected in the third quarter.

The chip maker’s total revenue in the first quarter was $12.8 billion. This means that the profit is almost the same as a year earlier. Net profit rose slightly to $2 billion.