Top PC makers such as Hewlett Packard (NYSE: HPQ) and Asus have offered to fix the flawed Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) Sandy Beach chipset as soon as replacement parts arrive. In addition, they will also take the products back with a free refund if customers are still not satisfied. Disclosed just this week, the critical design flaw originating from Intel could result in severe degradation in the performance of SATA components over time.

While Intel says the problem was only uncovered last week, the company has committed to make good on systems that were already shipped, as well as to replace affected stocks of the chipset. This presumably explains the swiftness of manufacturers and vendors in detailing the steps to take for replacements and refunds. Already, the likes of Acer, Dell and Samsung Electronics have said they are taking action, according to a report on eWeek. 

Ultimately, the cost of replacing a single chipset probably forms the cheapest part of the equation here. The cost of the actual repairs, logistics and admin overheads, liaising with customers and freight charges of returns will likely form a large part of the financial hit that Intel will bear. According to one analyst, this problem is expected to cost the chip maker $1 billion "in the long run." For now, vendors such as HP and Dell have postponed preliminary ship dates for systems based on Sandy Bridge.

For more on this story:
- check out this article at eWeek
- check out this article at PC Mag

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