Intel posted a solid start this year with quartedly earnings, and said that the company's smartphones along with products based on 22nm tri-gate technology will further drive the company's growth in 2012.

The company reported quarterly revenue of $12.9 billion, operating income of $3.8 billion, net income of $2.7 billion and EPS of $0.53. The company generated approximately $3.0 billion in cash from operations, paid dividends of $1.0 billion and used $1.5 billion to repurchase stock.

"The first quarter was a solid start to what's expected to be another growth year for Intel," said Paul Otellini, Intel president and CEO. "In the second quarter we'll see the first Intel-based smartphones in the market, ship products based on 22nm tri-gate technology in high volume, and accelerate the ramp of our best server product ever, providing a tremendous foundation for growth in 2012 and beyond."

The company is ramping up production of its newest Ivy Bridge PC processor, which is expected to drive sales later this year and power a new ultrabooks.

In the long term, the future of the PC is probably something in between the tablet and the laptop, he said. Microsoft's Windows 8 touch-oriented operating system is meshing with Otellini's vision.

However, the costs of upgrading the factories where the chips are being made is temporarily hurting margins, Chief Financial Officer Stacy Smith told a conference call.

CEO Paul Otellini told analysts on the call he was confident of the chipmaker's previous prediction the new ultrabooks would account for 40 percent of all notebook sales by the end of the year.

Intel has been also racing to find a foothold in smartphones and tablets, where processors based on ARM' power-efficient chip designs are widely used. The company has recently announced that its newest processors would be used in a handful of upcoming smartphones, beginning from those available in emerging markets.