Mainstream quad core by 2009

According to a study by research firm iSuppli half of all desktop PCs shipped in 2009 will be loaded with quad core processors.

At the moment quad core only exists on top end machines, which proportionately account for a small part of the market. However by 2009 the firm expects the processors to be common in a much larger number of cheaper machines machines.

By the third quarter of 2007 the firm predicts that quad cores will appear in five per cent of mainstream desktops, increasing to reach 18 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2008 and 49 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009.

Notebook quad core chips aren’t predicted to be part of mainstream until 2010, though they may emerge in higher price points by late 2009.

However some sources have pointed out other research that suggests desktop PCs themselves are rapidly losing market share to such an extent that laptops could make up 60 per cent of the computer market by 2009. If true, this would make the actual number of quad core desktops continue to be a relatively minor part of the equation.