Advanced Micro Devices has taken its time, but finally it’s thrown down the gauntlet in its bid to carve out a piece of the tablet space with its new Hondo processor chip. AMD says that its new chips are more than a match for Intel, and will present consumers with a tough choice when it comes to buying Windows 8 devices.

AMD’s release of the new Z-60 accelerated processing unit (APU) is somewhat opportunistic, given that it’s seen as the perfect matchmaker for energy-efficient Windows 8 tablets. The APU’s, which incorporate both microprocessor and graphics components into a single chip, are expected to provide the main competition to Intel’s Clover Trail, with AMD promising consumers a breathtaking experience whilst viewing photos, streaming videos and music, playing games and using apps.

Also battling it out are companies like Texas Instruments, Nvidia and Qualcomm, which produce ARM-based chips for use on Windows RT tablets – however, most experts believe that AMD, along with Intel, offer the best compatibility when it comes to running Windows apps on a tablet device. In addition, the 10 hour battery life and high-performing graphics means that AMD stands out from its competitors when it comes to Windows 8.

AMD boasts a range of high quality features in its Z-60, including accelerated app performance, enhanced gaming experience and vivid, high-definition media, whilst its commercial machines come with the promise of increased productivity, manageability and security.

Perhaps the most impressive feature of the AMD Z-60 is its power consumption – its two CPUs consumes just 4.5 watts, yet runs at an impressive 1.0 gigahertz, while boasting no less than 80 Radeon graphics cores.

AMD has promised a battery life of up to ten hours in Windows presentation mode, with a solid 8 hours for web browsing and six hours for video playback. In addition, its load speeds are also pretty impressive, being able to boot up to Windows in just 25 seconds, and wake up from sleep mode in just two seconds flat.