"In contrast, while AMD launched its 8-core and 12-core Opteron products, formerly code-named Magny Cours, OEMs didn't buy them and ship them in significant volume [in the second quarter]. I expect that to change in [the third quarter]," he said.

McCarron also said things could look up now for AMD. "Presumably in the third and fourth quarters they won't be weighed down by those transition issues," he said.

In the wider x86 market, including server, desktop and mobile processors, things looked better for AMD. Its overall market share increased a fraction between the first and second quarters, from 18.8 percent to 19.0 percent of processor units shipped.

AMD's share of laptop processor shipments increased to 13.7 percent in the second quarter, from 12.1 percent in the first quarter, while Intel's share fell from 87.8 percent to 86.1 percent. In desktop processors, Intel added a half percentage point of share from the first quarter, to reach 72.2 percent, IDC said.

Via Technologies accounted for 0.3 percent of overall processor shipments in the second quarter, up from 0.2 percent in the first quarter but down from 0.5 percent in the first quarter last year, IDC said.