glagic

any opinions/reviews on the new centrinos processors for laptops?

Speedfreak

Well, I know I am getting one. The Dell Latitude D800 to be exact.

Here is an informative review:
http://www.anandtech.com/mobile/showdoc.html?i=1801

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verve247

the centrino is composed of the processor and the wireless chip. Now the processor is great, but the wireless chip kinda sucks. It does not support the faster wireless protocols A or G.

I'd get a laptop with the M processor, though if you get it without the wireless part it is then not called a Centrino. Intel's doing this so they can pawn off an inferior chip with their more efficient chip.

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Speedfreak

Well, G is not a standard, yet. If you get those D-links with their so-called "G" support, you don't see MUCH improvement.

Then there is A, which is more expensive anyway.

I know @ Dell you can change the wifi minipci card. Get one with A/B or A/B/G.

verve247

Actually G is a standard wireless protocol. It is similar to A, only that it runs at the 2.4Ghz waveband. You can buy routers or base stations that support the G protocol and their are cards that support the G protocol which allows a 54 Mbps data transfer rate. This is better than B which allows a 11 or 22 Mbps transfer rate.

And you're right @ Dell you can change the wifi card. They have just signed a deal to carry Broadcom chips which are superior to those in the Centrino IMO.

Also the battery life of the Centrino appears to vary depending on the brandmaker. Sorry I don't have any cites, the online WSJ requires paid subscriptions to view and that is where i received most of my info.

Speedfreak

Right, I got all that, I just thought it was an official standard yet.


Very much so. Here is a review of some Centrino notebooks on CNET. If you look at the IBM, it has a battery life of 7 HOURS!!! That is only if you use the big 10.8V, 6,600mAh battery which sticks out the back of the unit (looks kind of tacky). All of the other machines were around 4 hours of battery life.

Joshua

I actually just saw an article yesterday that said Intel has A and G versions of the Centrino on the way.

Supposedly, it'll give you the performace of a 2.5ghz desktop at 1.4ghz actual speed, with the battery life of a low end celeron or better.

We'll see.

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Speedfreak

We alreay have the speed in the ones that are currently out. Once the Centrino A and G spec wifi comes out then it will be a complete system with the most current technology.

glagic

how soon will they come out? im looking to get a laptop around may and thinking about getting one with a pentium M processor.

edit:
im looking at the 600m with centrino. any opinions on this laptop or suggestions on others? im going to use this mainly as a secondary comp going between the apartment and school, so i need it to have a decent batter life of at least 3 hours.

verve247

Hey Speedfreak, do you work at Intel?

Jeffbx

Do you happen to have a link for that? I'm about to get a bunch of laptops & I'm still struggling with a few issues, and the clock speeds of the Centrino is one of them...

Joshua

I didn't have time to look for the exact story I read about, but these should get you started.

http://www.intel.com/products/mobile...Focus_details&

http://www.intel.com/products/mobile...cess_centrino&

Speedfreak

All the Centrinos I have seen so far have at least 3 hours and the ones with the least battery life are fully loaded (GF4 4200 go, 1.6Ghz P-M, etc). One of the new IBM ones was said to go 7 hours!!

Speedfreak

No. Why? Looking for a discount?


BTW: I didn't mean "We" as in Intel. I meant "We" as a consumer being able to buy a product.

verve247

Speedfreak-
Oh just curious. Your enthusiasm for Intel reminds me of those zealous MAC types.


Jeffbx-
yeah the Centrino breaks the GHz myth. Similar to AMD renaming their processors to match Intel.

Joshua

What's the Ghz myth you're referring to?

verve247

The GHz or MHz myth. It's the belief that that faster the processor speed the better the computer. This could be seen in computer advertisements and during Intel and AMD competing over the last several years, each trying to outdo the other. Eventually AMD starting releasing chips under a new architecture (forget the name) to compete with the P4. The gave their chips names like XP 2300+ meaning it may not clock at 2.3 GHz, but it is as fast as a 2.4 GHz P4.

The whole "MHz myth" comes from the MAC community. They were pissed that people would look at the processor speed and say MACs are slow and not taking into account OS, chip architecture, or rendering time.

And yes MACs are slow. Currently their chips are in dire need of a replacement which will hopefully happen later this year. The Mhz myth was created when MACs had more comparable processing power to PCs.

Joshua

Ya see! That's why I hang out here, you ain't picking up tidbits of knowledge like this on Discovery Channel!

Thanks!

Speedfreak

Well, I am happy because I want to get one. I am also happy to answer questions if I have the knowledge to do so.

Joshua

I finally found the original article I read on the Centrino:

* HERE COME THE CENTRINO NOTEBOOKS
Intel unleashed its Centrino mobile computing platform on March 12,
ushering in a new era of ultra-mobile yet ultra-powerful notebook
computers. Unlike previous mobile efforts from Intel, the Centrino
chipset offers Pentium 4-level performance without any of the
traditional tradeoffs of heat, weight, and battery life. The Centrino
chipset is powered by the new Pentium M processor, which can run at
speeds up to 1.6GHz and integrates wireless capability. Those two
features, Intel says, make the Centrino perfectly suited to address
the needs of the mobile workforce.

"I think people are ready for this technology," Intel CEO Craig
Barrett said at the Centrino launch in New York. "People want to use
their computers anywhere at any time in any configuration. There is a
groundswell of desire, there is a need, and there is a coming together
in the industry to provide this. This is really--after 20 years of
talking about it--the most tangible evidence of the convergence of
computing and communications."

The Pentium M processor runs at speeds of 900MHz, 1GHz, 1.3GHz,
1.4GHz, 1.5GHz, or 1.6GHz, but the chip is specially designed to
dynamically sense the processing needs of a system and can change its
output to match those needs, saving battery life and keeping heat
output low. As a result, the Pentium M features substantially better
battery life than Intel's other mobile chips, the Pentium III
Processor M and the Pentium 4 Processor M. However, thanks to a new
processor design, the Pentium M can perform at levels similar to the
high-end Pentium 4 Processor M, despite running at a lower clock
frequency.

Integrating wireless capability directly into the chipset also reduces
power consumption while freeing up space in the notebook, allowing for
thinner and smaller designs. Current Centrino models ship with 802.11b
wireless networking capability, but support for faster 802.11a and
802.11g is coming soon, Intel says.

Also at the launch, Intel announced that numerous PC makers, including
Dell, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard (HP), and IBM are all shipping
Centrino-based notebooks, effective immediately. Prices for the
machines start at about $1400.