Edible Apple

Intel’s line of Ivy Bridge processors were originally supposed to start shipping in late 2011, but due to factors that aren’t completely clear, it was revealed a few months ago that their release would be delayed until sometime in March or April of 2012.

Now comes word via XbitLabs that Intel has already informed its partners that its next-gen 22nm Ivy Bridge processors won’t be showing up until the second quarter of 2012. That effectively rules out a March release and points to an April release at the absolute earliest.

The reasons why Intel decided to postpone the launch of the world’s first desktop microprocessors made using 22nm transistors presumably to April from March are unclear. Perhaps, the company wants to ensure that there is no internal competition between existing Core i “Sandy Bridge” 2000 and future Core i “Ivy Bridge” 3000 chips. Maybe, the ramp up of brand new CPUs is taking longer than expected and Intel needs additional time to deliver enough products to the market.

XbitLabs also notes that the Ivy Bridge processors set for release in the second quarter of 2012 will not include Core i3-3200 series chips and will instead be comprised of the Core i7-3700 and Core i5-3500/3400 families.