Desktops To Go

Recognizing that manufacturers continue to cram desktop chips into laptops, Intel has been developing technology to improve the experience of people who buy desktop replacement notebooks. Today, the chip maker is bringing out the Mobile Intel Pentium 4 processor, a modified version of the standard P4. As with its desktop counterparts, the Mobile P4 runs at speeds up to 3.06GHz and has full Intel NetBurst microarchitecture. Hyper-Threading is turned off, though, and the front-side bus is only 533 MHz, not the 800 MHz supported by the 875P (formerly Canterwood) chipset. These reduced features, along with support for Enhanced SpeedStep technology and for Deeper Sleep technology, enable the desktop core to achieve more notebook-like battery life.

Intel is also launching the supporting 852 chipset family today. The 852GM is the low-end version. It supports only a 400-MHz FSB and 1GB of DDR 266 SDRAM, and integrates Intel Extreme Graphics running at 133 MHz. Moving into the performance category, the 852PM handles a 533-MHz FSB, 2GB of DDR 333 SDRAM, and external AGP 4X graphics. The 852GME is similar, but integrates the 266-MHz Intel Extreme Graphics 2 engine.

Notebooks featuring the new chips and chipsets will target buyers who want large screens, higher core clock speeds, and multiple drives—in short, people who want the desktop experience with some mobility (think apartment dweller going to a weekend getaway, not a daily commuter). In an upcoming First Look, well see how the new solution compares with the impressive Intel Pentium M in terms of battery life and performance. Check back soon.