AMD has coughed to a shortage of desktop processors, though it hopes the situation will be resolved some time next quarter.

An AMD spokeswoman confirmed the shortages, claiming they affect only the lower end of the company's desktop product line, CRN reports.

"AMD is experiencing unprecedented demand for our desktop processors and this unprecedented demand has depleted our supply of packaging components," she said. Apparently, AMD has no problem producing sufficient silicon.

She would not detail the chips concerned. However, the shortage is believed to extend to the Athlon 64 3500 and 3800, the Athlon 64 X2 3800, and the Sempron 2600 and 2800, according to reseller sources cited in the story.

Reports from a variety of websites suggest some low-end Opteron chips may also be hard to come by.

Recently, difficulties getting hold of dual-core Athlon 64 X2 3800 chips certainly forced a number of system builders to admit they may not be able to ship dual-core notebooks in time for Christmas. Sources close to one vendor told us they were preparing to ship single-core machines on loan until dual-core supplies started up, but it looks like X2 processors are now reaching vendors. ®