Intel will cut the prices of its fastest CPU for desktop and laptop PCs by as much as 38 percent to make ways for its upcoming faster models.

The price of Intel's Pentium 4 microprocessor running at 3 gigahertz was cut 32 percent to $401 from $589. The price of the mobile Pentium 4 chip running at 2.4 gigahertz was cut 38 percent to $348. Intel last made price cuts in February.

The price of Intel's newest chip for desktop computers, a Pentium 4 which also runs at 3 gigahertz but has a faster system bus, or pathway, to the rest of the computer, was set at $417. The new mobile chip, which runs at 2.5 gigahertz, was set at $562.

Cuts to Intel's price list, which shows the cost of bulk purchases of 1,000 chips, generally translate into reductions in the price of personal computers because microprocessors represent a significant percentage of the cost of a new computers.

Intel is not likely to keep the price of its fastest desktop Pentium 4 chip below $500 for long, according to a published report. A schedule of Intel prices released last week said that, in May, Intel will set the price of a soon-to-be-introduced 3.2 gigahertz Pentium 4 at $637.