Android started with humble beginnings as a possible alternative to iOS in the mobile arena. Over the years, Android has grown to be the largest mobile platform and is now beginning to trickle into the PC arena. However, AMD is not yet ready to start cozying with Android.

It is becoming increasingly important for AMD to address the question of Android. That’s because AMD’s chief competitor in the chip-making arena, Intel, is actively trying to encroach into the Android market.

In fact, Intel is already a major part of the Android ecosystem, creating processors for systems that directly run Android. For instance, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 3 will come with an Intel Atom processor as well as with an Intel 3G/LTE silicon.

Not only that, Intel is also working with a number of vendors to create such PCs and laptops which will directly run Android atop Intel’s processors. This poses a direct competition to the hegemony of Windows in the PC arena.

Given these circumstances, AMD needs to decide whether or not it wants to jump into the Android bandwagon. For now, the company says that there is ‘no schedule for Android/Chrome support announced [and] no specific processors mentioned for support.’

If AMD joins the fray a little too late, this would given Intel a huge headstart in the Android arena. Once that happens, it may become difficult for AMD to catch up with competition.

The uber-mini Gigabyte Brix measures approximately 4.5″ x 4.2″ x 1.2″, with future versions of the device expected to offer support for either an AMD Kabini SoC or Intel Haswell chip (Core i3 - Core i7), along with 16GB of RAM and an mSATA SSD.

As Liliputing's Brad Linder notes, Gigabyte has been showcasing the Brix since January, which originally seemed to be based on Intel's NUC design, or Next Unit of Computing.

However, the industry heavyweight will likely soon be offering models equipped with an AMD Kabini processor, specifically E1-2100, E1-2500 or E2-3000 dual-core chips, or a A4-5000 quad-core processor.

Although the AMD-equipped Brix will undoubtedly be priced lower than its Intel counterpart, the 9W-15W chip include Radeon HD graphics cores which should more than capable of rendering HD video playback and light gaming.

AMD continues to soldier forward in the PC market, but CEO Rory Read wants the company to get at least 20 percent of its revenue from other sources by the end of this year. Some of this money will come in from next-generation game consoles like the PlayStation 4 or the Xbox One. And some of it, according to a report from PC World, will soon be coming from Android tablets and Chromebooks.

"We are very committed to Windows 8; we think it's a great operating system, but we also see a market for Android and Chrome developing as well," AMD Senior Vice President and General Manager Lisa Su said at this week's Computex trade show. This runs counter to her statements from earlier this year, when the company was "betting heavily on Windows 8" and had no immediate plans to support Android.

Su didn't give a timeframe for when either Chrome OS or Android versions compatible with AMD chips would be available. However, the company did recently announce some low-voltage APUs (codenamed Temash) with TDPs of as little as 3.9 watts that could easily fit into this type of device. Those chips will supposedly be shipping soon, if they aren't already.

Moving to support other operating systems is a smart move for AMD, if one that they're a bit late with. Undercutting Intel on price has long been part of the company's business strategy, and both Chromebooks and Android tablets are continually trying to push prices lower. Current sub-$249 Chromebooks are powered by both ARM and Intel, and ARM-based Android tablets under $199 are also plentiful (and Intel is reportedly aiming for that price point with its forthcoming Bay Trail Atoms). At the right price, AMD's OK-CPU-good-integrated-GPU combination could be just what these devices are looking for.