While the Intel Atom might be all the rage, it certainly isn't the only newer embedded CPU trying to make its way through the market. We have talked several times about the VIA Isaiah, but for a change it may be the older C7 architecture that is going to get the Taiwanese manufacturer some unexpected high-stakes action this year.
There are reports indicating that HP has ordered at least 100,000 C7 ultra low-power CPUs with another 400,000 on the horizon, all of them destined to be put into HP's as of yet unfinished low-cost PC.
Gigabyte is also supposedly planning to deploy machines with VIA CPUs inside, in particular their newer UMPCs. Why would these companies favor an older architecture by a smaller company as opposed to the Atom? Increased hardware flexibility seems to be the key. With a C7-M ULV inside, manufacturers hope to make the most of a CPU that requires next to no power that is also capable of being put into a variety of environments, letting hardware manufactures pick all the rest of components they want to include.
VIA has for long been focusing on low-power CPUs, and now that the world is more interested in that kind of product it may be their time to shine.