Intel promises $300 hand-helds within a year

Hand-held computers from manufacturers you've never heard of will be on the market for less than £200, an Intel spokesman has predicted.

Last week silicon.com reported on Microsoft's plans to bring down prices and margins in the hand-held and smart phone businesses (http://www.silicon.com/a51588 ) - but things are progressing faster than expected.

Peter Green, general manager of Intel's Handheld Computer division, said Far Eastern manufacturers are already preparing products based on Microsoft's PocketPC operating system which will compete directly with rival Palm's on price - pretty much the only advantage the market leader has left over Microsoft.

He predicts a $300 (£211) device with a quarter VGA screen equivalent to today's HP Jornada 528 and a 200MHz or faster processor - from Intel, naturally.

Speaking to silicon.com at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco, Green said: "More than half the cost of these devices is the screen. And those costs are falling very fast.

"There's so much activity in this space that you'll see current market leaders as well as some of the less well known names bringing out devices in this price range."

Green also said that selling to business - and in particular resolving businesses' security issues - will be one of the keys to success in the market.

"That was the key to the success of Blackberry. They resolved the security issue, and got in behind the company firewall," he added.