Chipped Credit/Debit cards: are they really more secure than old style swipe cards?

[Acer]

I think the problem being addressed with the chip is duplicating a physical card with someone else's numbers. Easy for a counterfeiter to program a magnetic strip, harder to program a chip.

It does nothing for online fraud. Apparently in-person retail fraud is still the bigger fish?

Seems to me a PIN would help with the online part, but even that is just another piece of information that can be stolen in a breech.