ntel introduced a set of chips yesterday that promises to make wireless Internet access a standard feature on laptops and to untie computer users from power outlets and telephone jacks.

At news conferences in cities around the globe, Intel presented its new Centrino chips, designed to allow mobile computer users at home and in more public places to go on the Internet via radio waves.

"It's going to give a kick to the industry," Intel's chief executive, Craig Barrett, said in New York. "This is really — after 20 years of talking about it — the most tangible evidence" of the convergence of computing and communications, he said.

Shares of Intel rose 35 cents, or 2.2 percent, yesterday, to close at $16.20 on Nasdaq.

Centrino laptop users who are within 100 yards of access points called "hot spots" will be able to surf the Internet or use corporate networks. Intel said it was working with partners like telephone network operators, hotels and airports to verify that some 10,000 hot spots are fully up to speed this year in 15 countries around the globe.