SANTA CLARA, Calif., Sept. 10 (UPI) -- Computer chip maker Intel is expanding into the imaging market by introducing a new family of chips aimed at copiers and scanners, CNET News.com reported.
Many copiers and printers already use a Pentium processor but most need a secondary chip called ASIC, for application specific integrated circuit. Intel hopes its MXP chips will serve as a powerful but less expensive alternative to the ASIC for manipulating images.
"We wanted to develop some great technology to be able to serve (the imaging) market," said Patrick Johnson, general manager of Intel's advanced media processor operation.
"Essentially, it was a ground-up effort. We walked in with some ideas and we said, 'Here's what we think,' and (Xerox) said, 'Here's what we think.'"
The mid to higher end of the printing and imaging market amounts to about 130 million units per year and uses about $5 billion worth of semiconductors, according to Johnson.
