CES: Intel chief gears up to launch Intel Atom Medfield smartphone and Clover Trail tablet

CHIPMAKER Intel's CEO Paul Otellini is expected to unveil an Intel Atom based prototype smartphone as well as a tablet running a Clover Trail processor during his keynote, which begins at 4:30pm (PST) / 12:30am (GMT) today.

The INQUIRER got a sneak peek at the Intel stand this morning and some precious hands on time with the "reference smartphone" that Intel has built from scratch.

The smartphone is powered by a 32nm Intel Atom Medfield 1.6GHz single-core processor and has a 4.03in display. The device was running Android 2.3 Gingerbread, but the chipset is also compatible with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Other features include an 8MP rear camera with HD 1080p recording capabiltities and a 1MP front facing camera.

It has microUSB and HDMI ports that are likely to seen in any final product.

An Intel spokesperson confirmed that the Atom Medfield processor is compatible with all existing applications in the Android marketplace, but apps will need to be tweaked to take advantage of the built-in near field communications (NFC) and wireless display (WiDi) features.

At the tablet stand Intel showed off a Lenovo tablet, which also featured the same Atom Medfield processor. The 10in tablet was running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and Intel claims the device is capable of providing all-day battery life.

There was also another device that had a large cloth drapped over it and an Intel spokesperson confirmed that it was indeed a tablet with an Intel Clover Trail processor inside. Further details of the tablet are expected to be announced by Paul Otellini during his keynote presentation.

The INQUIRER will post hands on reviews and video demos of these Intel devices soon. µ