Has Intel Corporation (INTC) Already Peaked?

On the tablet front, Intel’s upcoming quad-core Bay Trail processor possesses the ability to converge the tablet and the PC into one device since it will be able to run full-blown Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows 8. It’s likely such a convergence would come at a premium, but for those users looking for a tablet that can do more than an ARM Holdings plc (ADR) (NASDAQ:ARMH)-based tablet, Bay Trail could potentially deliver in a big way.

The great unknown
Intel investors should be aware that there’s a current disconnection between where Intel is today and where it’s promising to be in the future. Between then and now, there’s a degree of uncertainty that Intel won’t be able to deliver compelling alternatives to ARM-based designs in a timely manner. Although the company does posses the world’s most advanced chip foundries, it doesn’t guarantee that it will be successful in the mobile computing industry, or that it will return to peak profitability. After all, the company continues to pour more of its money into research and development while it makes heavy investments into its future.

Despite this current uncertainty, Intel CEO Paul Otellini has assured investors that Intel’s cutting-edge foundries are the company’s single greatest asset. Hopefully in a few years’ time, the world will begin to see why.

The article Has Intel Already Peaked? originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Steve Heller owns shares of Intel. The Motley Fool recommends Intel. The Motley Fool owns shares of Intel and Microsoft.

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