Centrino Appears in a Slew of Notebooks

IBM Unveils Its Wireless Offerings

IBM makes the Centrino technology available in three different ThinkPad models: the T40 series, the X31 series, and the R40 series. The T40 models are revamped versions of the T30 line, which is being phased out but will remain available for certain customers for about a year, said Sam Dusi, director of PCD brand offerings at IBM.

Internally, IBM refers to the T40 as the "five and five" notebook, meaning that it offers more than 5 hours of battery life in a design that weighs less than 5 pounds, he said.

A midrange configuration of the T40 includes a 1.5-GHz Pentium M processor, a 14.1-inch display, a 40GB hard drive, 256MB of memory, the Intel Pro Wireless chip, and a combination CD-RW/DVD-ROM drive for $2399.

IBM will launch a workstation version of the T40 as the T40p. A typical configuration priced at $3499 will consist of a 1.6-GHz Pentium M CPU, a 14.1-inch display, a 40GB hard drive, 512MB of memory, an Atheros 802.11a/b wireless chip--along with Bluetooth wireless capability--and a combination CD-RW/DVD-ROM drive.

Ultraportable Options

The ultraportable X31 notebook weighs 3.6 pounds in a standard configuration without an additional battery. A typical ($2369) configuration of the X31 consists of a 1.4-GHz Pentium M processor, a 12.1-inch display, a 40GB hard drive, 256MB of memory, and the combination of Atheros 802.11a/b and Bluetooth wireless.

The R40 series is the lowest-priced notebook from IBM, which will release new versions with either Centrino chips or Intel's Celeron processors. An entry-level ($949) R40e will come with a 1.7-GHz Mobile Intel Celeron processor, a 13.3-inch display, a 20GB hard drive, 128MB of memory, and a CD-ROM optical drive.

The R40 model will be available with Celeron processors, too; a base specification with a 1.3-GHz Pentium M processor, a 14.1-inch display, a 20GB hard drive, 128MB of memory, ATI's Mobility Radeon graphics chip with 16MB of video memory, and the option to upgrade to a wireless option from Intel or Cisco costs $1329.

HP's Lone Entry

HP's lone entry using the new Pentium M processor is the Compaq Evo N620c, a thin-and-light notebook designed for mobile professionals, the company's Franco said. HP chose to offer its own Multiport 802.11b wireless technology in the new notebook because it gives buyers more flexibility to choose a wireless notebook at their own pace, according to Franco. In June, HP will launch a notebook with the complete Centrino platform, she said.

A base configuration with a 1.4-GHz Pentium M, a 14.1-inch display, a 40GB hard drive, 256MB of memory, ATI's Mobility Radeon 7500 with 32MB of video memory, and a DVD-ROM drive costs $1799 and will be available worldwide. More-expensive configurations with faster processors and more features will be available only in the United States.

Dell's Products

Dell kicks off its new D family of Latitude notebooks with the D600 and D800. The company made its C family of notebooks thinner and lighter by using Intel's new processor, said Kathleen Astl, Latitude marketing manager. In its base configuration--with a 1.3-GHz Pentium M chip, a 14-inch display, a 20GB hard drive, 128MB of memory, the Intel Pro Wireless chip, and a CD-ROM drive--the D600 costs $1399 and weighs 4.68 pounds with a four-cell battery in place. The D800 costs $1699 with the same 1.3-GHz processor, a 15-inch display, a 20GB hard drive, 128MB of memory, an NVidia GeForce4 4200 Go graphics card with 32MB of memory, the Intel Pro Wireless chip, and an DVD-ROM drive.

The Round Rock, Texas, company plans to introduce an Inspiron notebook designed specifically for the consumer, one week after updating the rest of its Inspiron line. The Inspiron 600m will cost $1399 for a base configuration with a 1.3-GHz Pentium M processor, a 14.1-inch display, a 30GB hard drive, 256MB of DDR SDRAM, and the Intel Pro Wireless card.

Gateway Systems

Gateway will introduce two notebooks featuring the Centrino package in its 450 series on Wednesday. The $1599 450X comes with a 1.3-GHz Pentium M processor, a 15-inch display, a 30GB hard drive, 256MB of DDR memory, the Intel Pro Wireless card, and a combination CD-RW/DVD-ROM drive.

The 450XL uses a 1.5-GHz processor, a 15-inch display, a 40GB hard drive, 512MB of DDR SDRAM memory, the Intel Pro Wireless Card, and a combination CD-RW/DVD-ROM drive for $1999. Both notebooks weigh between 5.79 pounds and 6.13 pounds, depending on whether they include an additional battery.

Most of Gateway's customers are requesting 802.11a wireless connectivity, according to a representative. The Poway, California, company will attempt to meet that demand over the next few months by offering machines that use an 802.11a/b chip, as well as an 802.11a/g chip, she said. Gateway is not disclosing the manufacturer of those wireless chips.

Not all of the news about Centrino is confined to notebooks. Motion Computing announced Wednesday that it will offer a Tablet PC based on the Centrino package by the middle of this year. Motion is building its newest Tablet PC around Intel's 900-MHz ultra-low-voltage Pentium M processor and its Pro Wireless chip, a company representative said.