In the beginning, there was the x86 mobile Internet device (MID)—a compact, handheld, touchscreen-enabled, Windows- and Linux-based device that, in the end, nobody really wanted. As of today's Atom Z670 series launch, there's the x86 tablet—a compact, handheld, touchscreen-enabled, Windows- and Linux-based device that... well, check back with us in a year.

Oak Trail, which is the codename for the aforementioned, tablet-oriented Atom part, is certainly a vast improvement over the hardware that powered Intel's ill-fated MID attempts. At 45nm, with a CPU and GPU integrated onto the same die, the tiny chip will sip power, but it still won't get down into ARM territory. Even if it did, that wouldn't make much of a difference for its commercial prospects, because right now the tablet market consists almost entirely of two products: the iPad and the iPad 2.

Of course, Oak Trail will run more than just Windows and Linux; there's always the x86 Android port. But our experiences with the Android-based competition show that it has a long, long, long way to go before catching up to Apple's ARM-powered offering. Everything about the Android tablet experience, from the hardware and software to the price point, is inferior to the iPad. So what hope is there for Intel's Oak Trail to swoop in and change the game?

There is no hope, but that's not really the point of Oak Trail. Intel's latest stab at an MID/tablet-oriented hardware platform is just one more step on its long march to the smartphone, a destination it's unlikely to reach until it gets a future Oak Trail successor down to 22nm. Until then, Intel will keep producing these "tablet" chips, which will find their way into designs from a number of OEMs, some of which are neat in a gimmicky sort of way, and none of which are likely to sell well.

If netbooks were still selling like hotcakes, this could significantly improve Oak Trail's prospects, because it will be a solid netbook part. But they aren't, so we're left to watch Intel mark time in this fashion for another year or so until it finally catches up to the ARM ecosystem.