Intel sustains marginal lead over AMD

Intel has succeeded in maintaining its lead in the retail computer and notebook market over rival AMD, according to new data from Current Analysis.

The analyst firm put Intel's July market share at 53 percent, up slightly from last month's 51 percent.

Preliminary data for August indicates that Intel improved its lead to 58 percent. The figure does not include online sales and units sold to enterprises.

"The battle between Intel and AMD will intensify for the remainder of the second half of 2006, and only time will tell whether Intel's resurgence can be likened to the waking of a sleeping giant," Toni Duboise, a senior analyst with Current Analysis, wrote in a report.

July and August are important months for PC sales because of back-to-school shopping.

Intel has significantly lowered its prices in recent months as it attempts to fight off competition from AMD. The price reductions contributed to a drop in the average PC selling price.

The average desktop PC sale price in July was US$550, down US$644 year over year. The month also marked the first period ever when more than 50 percent of all PCs were sold for less than US$500.