significant cost in switching to a very different instruction set such as x86
Oh really? So recompiling Android for x86 is "significant cost"? Because that's all it takes. Apps run on a Java VM, they don't care. BS, through and through. Asus already has Android tablets running on x86 Atoms and the only problematic apps there are a few games - probably using that feature which allows to use some C code in Android applications for performance-critical parts.
Intel's having difficulties because market is flooded with cheap Mediatek junk and uneducated buyers shout "OMG QUAD CORE" when they see a MT6582M and think it's as good as Snapdragon 800 or Atom Z3770 and better than A6x (because it only has TWO cores!!!1). Of course it's difficult to enter the market in such stupid conditions. But it's Intel we're talking about. Where did PowerPC go? Where's AMD? Where will nVIDIA's low-end GPUs soon end up? Irrelevaland, that's where. Broadwell-Y, Moorefield and Cherry Trail will set things straight. It's indeed really just up to device makers. Samsung wants to push their own SoCs and Qualcomm wouldn't want to lose the market, but a LOT of manufacturers will switch if it suits them. Right now Intel chips end up in a lot of Asus tablets as well as devices by no-name Asian brands (which sell like hotcakes due to low price and high demand) but soon everyone will want an Intel chip. It's great even from a marketing point of view - uneducated customers will be familiar with the Intel brand (even my grandma knows what Intel is) and would be more inclined to buy the device with their CPU. It's just a matter of time. Big boys are here, ARM, back to your routers, Raspberries and smartwatches... until Intel decides it wants their chips in those, too.
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