Hewlett-Packard officials are halting production of PCs containing a flawed
chipset from Intel and offering replacements or refunds to consumers who
already have bought such systems.
HP’s
decision follows Intel’s announcement Jan. 31 that a design flaw in a
supporting chipset tied to its "Sandy Bridge" Core-i processors can cause
the PCs not to function properly. Intel has stopped producing the flawed
chipset and will start shipping fixed replacements in late February, with plans
to be back in full production by April, if not earlier.
HP’s
actions mirror those of other
PC makers who are trying to handle the fallout from the Intel announcement.
Intel officials said they found the flaw in its 6-Series chipset — dubbed "Cougar
Point" — last week, created a fix and decided Jan. 30 to halt production. They
began talking with PC makers the same day they announced the decision to the
industry.
Acer,
Dell, Samsung Electronics and others have said they are taking a range of
actions, including offering refunds or replacements to buyers of PCs with the
problem chipset. All said they are working closely with Intel on these plans.
Overall, the issue could cost Intel as much as $1 billion in lost revenue and related
expenses. Officials with the chip maker said about 8 million of the flawed
chipsets have been shipped.
For more, read the eWeek article: HP to Refund, Replace PCs with Faulty Intel Chipset.