In line with the rumored April 23 launch date, BBC News reports that Intel has officially introduced the first batch of its next-generation Ivy Bridge processors. The processors are Intel's first to use a 22-nm manufacturing process and "Tri-Gate" technology of 3D transistors to reduce power and increase efficiency.

Rather than shove "me-too" MacBook Air clones down the throats of consumers, Intel's vying new form factors — hybrid ones — to give the Ultrabook a chance to really become a whole new category of mobile computing.

Intel is expected to move up the announcement of its next-generation Ivy Bridge processors from the original date of April 29th to April 23rd, Digitimes reported on Thursday.

At the Intel Developer Forum that took place yesterday, Intel’s Vice President and General Manager of the PC Client Group Kirk Skaugen revealed ( 14:30 mark ) that Intel’s upcoming Ivy Bridge Processor is built for Retina display computers, “if OEMs choose to use it.” “Retina display” is a marketing term coined by Apple to describe a screen where one cannot discern pixels at an average usage distance with 20/20 vision. It is curious that Intel’s VP used an Apple term to describe high-density computer displays for the broader market.

VR-Zone reports that Intel has begun shipping its second-generation Thunderbolt controller chip, known as "Cactus Ridge". As previously discussed , Cactus Ridge will arrive in both four-channel (DSL3510) and two-channel (DSL3310) versions, offering Apple a pair of options for including the new chips in its forthcoming products

Research firm Gartner today released its preliminary personal computer shipment data for the first quarter of 2012, offering up a picture of market performance during the quarter. While Apple experienced only small year-over-year unit growth of over 3.8% and was beaten among top 5 vendors by HP's 6.6% growth, the company did once again outperform the overall industry and its 3.5% decline. Gartner's Preliminary U.S

Digitimes points to a report in Taiwan's Economic Daily News claiming that Apple is planning to introduce updated iMac models in June, a bit later than some had initially hoped given Intel's Ivy Bridge launch schedule that would see quad-core desktop processors launch at the end of this month. PC ODM Quanta Computer and chassis supplier Foxconn Technology are expected to benefit from the launch of Apple's latest iMac desktops, which are set to launch in June with Intel's latest Ivy Bridge processors, according to a Chinese-language Economic Daily News (EDN) report citing sources from the upstream supply chain. The report repeats a claim from earlier this week indicating that Apple will be using anti-reflective glass for the new iMac, and also suggests that updated MacBook Pro models are due "at the end of the second quarter"

Apple has some unusual bedfellows, Intel and Qualcomm, in a patent infringement case that it's fighting with Samsung in Australia. According to a Bloomberg report , Intel and Qualcomm agreed to provide the Australian court with source code that'll prove Apple isn't infringing on patents held by Samsung. The trial is slated to begin July 9 and will run through October 12

Digitimes claims that Apple will be ramping up production of the new 15" MacBook Pro in April, but with the new 13.3" model not ramping up until June: As Apple will start mass producing its 15-inch MacBook Pro in April, sources from the upstream supply chain have pointed out that the company's orders for the 13.3-inch model are far higher than those of the 15-inch, indicating that Apple is more focused on the 13.3-inch notebook segment. However, the 13.3-inch MacBook Pro will not start mass production until June. Digitimes also notes that the orders for the 13.3" MacBook Pro is "far higher" than those of the 15" model, though without a frame of reference for the typical mix of Apple notebook sales, it's hard to gauge the significance of this observation.

CPU World reports that Intel will be introducing a number of its new Ivy Bridge processors for desktop and mobile systems during the week of April 22-28, with availability set for April 29. The date had previously been cited as the launch for quad-core desktop chips, but the latest rumors indicate that several quad-core mobile chips will be making their debuts at the same time.