The battle lines are drawn as Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) moves to take on the MacBook Air this Christmas season. Speaking to Liz Claman of Fox Business Network, Intel CEO Paul Otellini confirmed that "we have 11 companies shipping different SKUs, different models this Christmas."

He ticked off big-name computer makers such as Lenovo, Asus, Acer, Sony, Toshiba "and a few others." And when Intel introduces its next generation of processors based on Ivy Bridge, Otellini said that "there's 60 more models coming out."

That's not all either. Consumers can expect hybrid Ultrabook designs to emerge when Windows 8 is released next year too. As reported in September, Windows 8 will incorporate both a traditional desktop interface and a Metro style touch interface. Reviews of Ultrabooks by Acer and Asus have been surfacing the last two weeks, so this is no mere saber-rattling. They're currently priced at around a thousand dollars, with physical dimensions matching that of the MacBook Air, and Intel says prices are expected to drop to $699 eventually as costs of key components drop in tandem with rising demand.

While not overwhelmed, reviewers are generally upbeat that the suave Ultrabooks are sufficiently "zippy" for everyday computing tasks.

Are we witnessing the comeback of the Wintel alliance here? I share my thoughts on this in today's commentary. In the meantime, you can catch the video of the interview here.

For more on this story:
- check out this article at PCWorld
- check out this article at CNET News

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