However revenue from the Intel Atom microprocessor and chipset was only $269 million, down 32 percent year over year. Intel is pinning its hopes on Atom processors as it puts more focus on handheld devices and looks to put the low-power chips in tablets and smartphones.

Atom sales dropped mostly due to the slow netbook demand, said Stacy Smith, chief financial officer of Intel, on a conference call.

Intel's revenue growth comes at a time when analyst firms are reporting slow growth in quarterly PC unit shipments, partly due to the growing interest in tablets. According to IDC, worldwide PC shipments increased by just 3.6 percent during the third quarter this year compared to the year-ago quarter.

Intel's laptop business saw double-digit sales growth due to strong enterprise demand, Otellini said on the call. However, the consumer PC market is weak as demand for products has softened in mature markets such as the U.S. and Western Europe.