SAN FRANCISCO - Get ready for the next wave of over-achieving
Intel-equipped laptops this fall. The chip giant recently showed off
its newest mobile processing technology called Centrino 2 in San
Francisco.
The chips are faster, cooler and battery misers. You
can play a Blu-ray movie (seven times more intensive than DVD)
onscreen, or hooked up to your High Definition TV, with time to spare
for extra computing.
The game playing rivals desktop computers
with the added ability for laptops to play wirelessly against each
other with no required network. You will even be able to switch between
two graphics chips in a gaming laptop, a faster one for performance and
an integrated graphics chip for battery-saving office work. Lenovo
demonstrated the instant switch on their new series SL laptops using
Centrino 2 chips.
The new Centrino 2 chips, a combination of two processors and
supporting functions in new laptops, also offer the fastest wireless
connection technology called WiMAX. It is similar to existing home WiFi
technology but can bridge over much longer distances similar to
cellphone towers without the associated high cost of the cellphone
industry.
WiMax technology has been around for several years but
is still in its infancy in terms of wide acceptance. Trials are
starting in Baltimore, Md., in September, followed by Chicago and
Washington, D.C., before the end of the year.
Dozens of
demonstrations from laptop makers showed off the prowess of Centrino 2
technology five years after the first version propelled laptops to more
than 50-per-cent market share over desktops worldwide.
The new
laptops were able to run longer on a battery charge and perform faster.
Lenovo's new Centrino 2-based ThinkPad X200 13.1 inch screen, at 1.34
kg, can run for 9.8 hours before the next battery charge.
"We
summarize the concept of the new Centrino 2 in one word: HUGI 'Hurry Up
and Get Idle' said Mody Eden, corporate VP and general manager for the
Intel mobile graphics group.
He demonstrated how new Centrino 2 laptops from Lenovo, Acer, HP, Sony and Toshiba could run software up to four times faster.
"The new processors get the job done sooner and spend more time in sleep mode, saving battery power," added Eden.
The
new laptops will also be equipped with cellphone technology, allowing
many choices of how to connect to the Internet wirelessly.
Centrino 2 also offers features for the enterprise sector.
Its
more expensive vPro technology, allows a large or small company to
wirelessly access and administrate its laptops anywhere in the world,
even outside company networks. A live demonstration showed a crippled
laptop that could not start in Windows. An IT administrator was able to
access the laptop in its non-working state wirelessly and make repairs
as if they were sitting in front of the computer, a first in today's
rapidly changing cordless technology.
Although Intel has shipped
Centrino 2 chips to laptop makers, it will be several months before
consumers can get their hands on one. The deadline for this year's
back-to-school laptops will be missed and the first wave of these new
laptops, whose chip software is still being fine tuned, will not be
able to compete in the price-conscious consumer market.
For more information go to www.intel.com/products/centrino
Steve
Makris is a freelance technology writer and can be reached at
www.stevoid@pressword.com and can be seen on the Monday Morning News
show on Global TV.
From : http://www.canada.com/
