AMD on Tuesday also announced Athlon II models that provide full multimedia performance while drawing only 45 watts of power. Most Athlon II chips available today draw between 65 watts to 95 watts.

The low-power lineup include dual-core, triple-core and quad-core chips that chips run at speeds between 2.2GHz and 2.8GHz. The chips are priced at under $143 in units of 1,000.

AMD's new chips are made using the new 45-nanometer manufacturing process, an AMD spokeswoman said. The chips typically are smaller and offer better performance than chips made using the older 65-nm process. AMD is trying to move a larger mix of its chips to the new manufacturing process in an effort to cut costs and offer more energy-efficient chips, company executives said on an earnings call last week.