During investment presentations, Intel CEO Paul Otellini admitted that the company’s old strategy for mobile needed a makeover, but was optimistic about their prospects come 2012.

Intel is redirecting itself towards the mobile arena, and with big goals, too. Otellini said Intel’s focus would shift toward more ultra-mobile hardware like phones and tablets, and look to make them more power-efficient than any device we’re seeing in today’s market. Intel’s executive VP for mobile David Perlmutter shed some extra light on the plans, noting that future Intel-based devices will mimic many of the features seen on today’s tablets, such as instant-on, persistent Internet access, and battery life of about 10 hours. First half of 2012 was mentioned as a target for x86 handset launches, but beyond that plans were hazy.

“In two years we expect that Intel-based devices will combine the best attributes of PCs and tablets,” said Perlmutter. Not Meego devices, though, which Otellini admitted were taking a huge hit from the Microsoft-Nokia partnership. So Meego is on ice for now.

Obviously, it’ll be a while before Intel infiltrates handsets and tablets in a major way, but the company definitely has mobile in its crosshairs and now they’ve got some stated goals we can look forward to.