Total recall
HEXUS readers will probably already be aware of the announcement from Intel of a design error in the Cougar Point chipset that accompanies the latest Sandy Bridge chips. This has led the chip giant to halt shipments of it with immediate effect.
While the error will apparently lead to the degradation of the chips over time, it turns out that Intel is recalling all of them now, in order to nip the problem in the bud. We suppose it says good things about Intel that recalls such as this happen so seldom, but when they do, they tend to be on a grand scale.
To find out more about how Intel is messaging e-tailers, the channel and end-users about this issue, we spoke to Shelley Raja, MD of tech e-tailer SCAN. "Our contacts at Intel and its board partners have advised us of an almost total recall on all Cougar Point boards," confirmed Raja.
It's not clear what proportion of all the chips Intel suspects of containing the flaw, but it looks like it's recalling the lot just in case. Raja was keen to stress, however, that there's no reason for anyone who has purchased a board or system containing this chip to panic. SCAN is working closely with Intel on the recall and replacement, and the issue isn't expected to affect system performance in the meantime.
"We're working with Intel and the board partners on best business practice," said Raja. He explained that SCAN is sending every affected board it has back to the relevant board partner, and as soon as it has replacements it will contact its customers. There will obviously also be delays for people who have ordered complete systems.
So, while this looks like an unfortunate situation for both the channel and end-users, Intel appears to have done everything in its power to resolve the situation once the nature of it became clear. The recall seems to apply to all e-tailers, retailers and distributors.
We know that both Intel and SCAN read HEXUS regularly, so please do share your thoughts, experiences and concerns on this matter with us and we'll make sure your comments come to their attention.
