Friday, May 11, 2007

 

Which Chipset Is Which?

Inside Intel's New Centrino Duo and Centrino Pro

(Santa Rosa)

Which Chipset Is Which?

How do you know if your laptop has the new chipset? One sure way is to find out what model processor it uses. If it's an odd-numbered one (such as T7300, T7500, or T7700), you have the new platform. Of course, you can always navigate through the Microsoft Windows Device Manager and figure out which chipset is loaded, but asking for the processor model number is a sure bet. Deciphering between a Centrino Duo and a Centrino Pro laptop will take some investigating, but finding out if it has the Gigabit controller will clinch it. (The other difference is the AMT drivers.)

As usual, PC Magazine got its hands on several laptops—from HP, Gateway, Lenovo, Fujitsu, and Dell—featuring the new chipset. All of the systems tested have the Centrino Duo platform. (We'll be rounding up Centrino Pro laptops shortly.) Performance gains over the old chipset start picking up as you move up the processor ladder, but typical improvements will be in the 3 to 10 percent range. These gains will become more apparent once key components catch up to speed.

That said, the FSB merely provides a link from the processor to system memory. You'll need components that will take advantage of the speed boost. The HP Pavilion dv2500t, the Fujitsu LifeBook A6030, and the Dell Latitude D630 all feature a 2-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7300 processor. Further up the ladder is the Gateway E-265M and its 2.2-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7500 CPU. All the way at the top are the Lenovo ThinkPad T61 Widescreen and the HP Pavilion HDX9000, both with the 2.4-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T7700. Intel is also adding the 1.8-GHz Core 2 Duo T7100, and low-voltage processors using the Core 2 Duo L7300(1.4-GHz) and L7500(1.6-GHz). All of these processors are rated to support the new 800-MHz bus frequency.

In order to take full advantage of the new chipset's capabilities, you really need all the components to be rated at 800 MHz. Although the processors and the front-side bus are already there, system memory still has to catch up. Current memory modules (including those in the new Santa Rosa laptops) are rated up to only 667 MHz. Laptops incorporating 800-MHz SODIMMs, or PC2-6400 modules, will become available later on this year. So far, however, Intel has not said one way or another whether its new Centrino Duo and Centrino Pro platforms will support those 800-MHz memory modules.—next: Revved-Up Performance >

Labels: centrino

by dayatna at 7:57 PM |