Intel’s emphasis on the low-end and emerging markets is clearly in accordance with big opportunities in this segment and as Linley Group of analysts report says that most growth in mobile in 2013 will take place in China and other price-conscious countries.

"After years of racing to deliver more performance, Smartphone makers shifted their attention to the low end. In China, the world's largest Smartphone market, half of all Smartphones sell for less than 1,000 Yuan ($160), and some prices have fallen below 700 Yuan," the Linley Group said.

This step by Intel to focus on low-end seems sensible since its competitors at the other end of the market are now shipping quad-core handsets, with more on the way.

While Intel also outlined its quad-core Bay Trail plans for the tablet market at CES, much of that space is dominated by ARM designs, meaning Intel has a similarly difficult task on its hands.

Alex Gauna, an analyst at JMP Securities, said that Intel's announcements “fell short of introducing any new breakthrough design wins or use cases” and that its achievements were iterative, rather than "the game changers".

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