Laptops Arena

There is a constant need for speed while using your computer, be it in the form of a newest notebook or common PC, and due to this need many notebook manufacturers produce mobile devices having an integrated desktop CPU. It is known that these desktop processors are the precedents of their equivalents in the notebook sectors; this is the reason why mySN QXG7 notebook (type Clevo D9F) is the object of the testing with the currently available Intel chip predominantly reserved for desktops. The CPU exchange can be easily executed by removing a flap that is located on the notebook’s bottom side and gives quick access to the inside components.
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The system’s specifications pertaining to the present test are: an Intel X58 ICH10R Chipsatz, an Intel Core i7 base1366 Desktop CPUs, Nvidia Geforce GTX 280M 1024MB GDDR3, 17“ WUXGA Aktive Matrix Glare TFT, a memory of 6GB DDR3 RAM 1066 MHz (3x2GB), and 3x Seagate Momentus 500GB/7200U (ST9500420AS) RAID 0.

The Intel Core i7 accomodates approx. 820 million transistors on its surface provided by Nehalem architecture style and has a DDR3 memory channels, it has also a main feature reflected by the “Turbo Boost” function, which is able to overclock the single cores when required, thus offering the advantage in apps of an unexhausted multi core architecture. The Multi CPU test show an i7 processor developing at its full strength, with its 8 parallel processors that are able to handle pending tasks in a short time due to the hyper-threading.

The next step in the test is wPrime evaluation defined as a multi core capable program that records the CPU’s velocity for a standardized, sophisticated computation, at the same time taking into account the hyper-threading feature. The PC Mark Vantage evaluation displayed a score of 7500 points for thei7-950 chip, whereas the most efficient one – the i7-975 – has scored only 7000 points. Other results to vary were recorded on Memories Suite, Productivity Suite, and Music Suite.

The PCMark05 evaluation test revealed results connected to the velocity of a single chip, the system reaching points between 10000 and 12000, which is a 20% plus, this depending on the applied CPU. On the PCMark06 the 13000 points showed an approx. 10% level. As to the gaming performance, the game-integrated benchmarks from GPU and CPU tests and a resolution of 1024 x 768 were utilized in order to display a comparison. The result shows that while an increased graphic is required, the CPU’s influence decreases offering a constancy between low details and high details of a span of 134-188 fps.

As a drawing conclusion the latest Intel Core i7 processors in notebooks reveal a performance head start due to the Nehalem architecture rising hopes for strong efficient boost and through the Turbo Boost feature it renders the possibility of performing good at the tasks required opposing to the common Core Quad chips.

If you're thinking about grabbing a netbook powered by the ubiquitous Intel Atom processor, then I think you should reconsider that. No, I'm not talking about the AMD threat, I am talking about Intel's threat to its own product. How's that? It's very easy - the fastest Atom processor has still some time ahead of it, until it finally reaches consumers!

If you missed the unofficial info leaked so far, here's what Intel officially revealed on Tuesday: the next generation Atom platform is codenamed Pine Trail, and will arrive in late 2009, with the fastest Atom processor to be... Pineview!

I know, it sounds a bit confusing, it was easier to think about the Atom platform, using the Atom processor... and now it's Pine Trail with the Pineview inside. Well, some things aren't here to be understood, and the name doesn't really matter, when it comes to processors - at least in my opinion, of course.
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Taking integration one step forward, Pineview brings together the memory controller, GPU, and CPU on the same die. This way, the next-gen Atom platform will only use two chips, instead of three.

Since we're talking about a 45nm part, it should be obvious that the Pineview-powered devices will have a longer battery life when compared to those currently using the Atom platform.

These being said, there's still a lot to be said, but only when this new platform is out on the market. For now, the fastest Intel Atom processor is more than enough for a netbook, and I am sure the one headed this way will make things even more interesting for those looking to have as much mobility as possible with the most competitively priced solutions.

During these times, grabbing some technology contract with a governmen is pure gold, although everything usually starts as a partnership where you, the company involved, usually give a lot without taking anything back. After all, there's a lot to earn when it comes to long-term maintenance, so giving away some computers and other resources may be a really smart thing to do, as Intel's Vietnam offensive proves...

According to Intel's official press release, the story goes like this - "Dr. Nguyen Thien Nhan, deputy prime minister and minister of Education and Training (MOET), Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and Dr. Craig Barrett, Intel Corporation chairman, today witnessed the signing of an agreement between Intel Semiconductor Ltd. Vietnam and the MOET. The agreement is focused on accelerating the MOET's e-learning initiative. The e-learning initiative aims to modernize Vietnam's education system by 2011 and to provide opportunities for the country's teachers and students – especially those in remote and rural areas."
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That happened a few days ago, and the future will see that "Intel and local technology companies will make available 1 million affordable PCs during the next 2 years," with the goal "to provide all Vietnamese teachers with a PC with educational software and broadband Internet connectivity."

If you're a teacher in Vietnam, then the future looks pretty interesting for you. No, I am not talking about the fact that you may get a computer, if you don't have one yet. This is what I am talking about - "The MOET and Intel also announced a contest to encourage 1 million teachers nationwide to create e-learning content. The goal is to stimulate the creation of 1 million unique e-learning applications."

I would really like to see similar initiatives coming from AMD, but they're in a pretty delicate situation these days, so they should help themselves, first of all...

When you say "fastest laptop," most people think about the combined speed of the CPU, GPU, memory and hard drive, but what about the laptop that boots up faster than you can say "fast laptop," huh?

No, I am not joking, only that you won't see a laptop capable of loading Windows XP or Vista in 2 seconds anytime soon. On the other hand, it seems Intel wants to come up with a open-source platform able to become ready to rock in a snap! I am sure you already know what OS they'll use, but let's get deeper the right way...
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Moblin is Intel's Linux-based mobile platform, and at the Linux Collaboration Summit in San Francisco, Intel Open Source Technology Center director Imhad Sousou simply said "We think that two second boot is possible." Why would he go as far?

For now, Moblin 2 alpha shows every major component of a mobile platform using Atom and Moblin only needs a few seconds to fire up, but Intel has a lot of work ahead to make the 2 seconds boot time a reality. Unfortunately, laptops won't probably go as low as 2 seconds, since embedded applications are the main target of this new platform.

Just as a side note, Intel's new partnership with the Linux Foundation is something that big companies like Microsoft or Apple should be doing these days, and not silly ads claiming that "ours is cheaper," but I am not the one to change their way of doing business...

If you're not much into hardware, then let me tell you a very simple thing - as lower the voltage needed by a certain chip, the lower its temperature. When overclocking processors, increasing voltage is the last thing to do to ensure the system works properly, but considering the small chips used these days in notebooks, and the fact that most of us have more computing power than needed on the road, we need even lower voltage chips to get things right.

According to various sources, Intel's Consumer Ultra Low-Voltage (CULV) initiative will have as leaders two of the largest PC makers,probably Dell and HP, both expected to come up with tiny notebooks with screens between 11 and 13 inches, sometime during this summer.
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These sources also claim that Acer and ASUS should be hurt by these new releases, since they have a solid percentage of their income coming from that part of the market. Now, I only ask myself how similar to the ASUS Eee PC will be those new notebooks? The reason is obvious - you want to win a game, you have to play by its rules, and in the UMPC market, ASUS is the main player, as well as the one setting the rules.

Since pricing and processors expected to be used in these platforms are currently only rumors, I won't say anything else. Let's just wait and see what happens, shall we?