Intel is seeing a shortage of the chipsets that use its new Core 2 Duo processor, thanks to increased demand fed by back-to-school buying. A Macworld UK article quoted a representative at Asustek Computer, which supplies nearly 40% of the motherboards used in the computer industry, as saying that the higher demand "caught companies by surprise."
An unnamed executive at Giga-Byte Technology, which also makes motherboards, backed up the claim. Since it takes several weeks for increased chipset output to reach the market, the shortage could become more severe if demand doesnit let up.
Apple uses the Core Duo processor in its MacBook, MacBook Pro, iMac, and Mac mini computers, with Intelis Xeon processor employed in the Mac Pro and Xserve. It has not announced any plans to put the Core 2 Duo in any of its machines.