Intel delays Sandy Bridge processor rollout due to flaw

Intel announced yesterday that it must delay production of its new Sandy Bridge Core family of chips for desktops and laptops. Intel quality assurance engineers found a “design issue” in the Cougar Point chipset that communicates between Serial-ATA ports and the processors.

“In some cases, the Serial-ATA (SATA) ports within the chipsets may degrade over time, potentially impacting the performance or functionality of SATA-linked devices such as hard disk drives and DVD-drives,” says the Intel statement.

Intel says that there are no flaws in the Sandy Bridge chip designs themselves. It expects to ship corrected versions to OEM customers in late February, but not to get to full volume production until April.

Sandy Bridge is Intel’s second generation of Core processors including Core i3, i5 and i7. It has been eagerly anticipated for its increased speed and reduced power consumption, particularly useful for portable computers.

On-line computing forums are filled with posts from unhappy consumers frustrated by the inevitable delay. If you’ve been waiting to buy a new computer until manufacturers release new Sandy Bridge models, as I am, you’ll find this annoying.