Mobile Technology: Notebooks Get a Boost From Dual-Core Processors
Photograph: Robert Cardin; Background: Geoff SpearIntel released the Core Duo mobile dual-core processor late last year, and notebooks have taken a performance leap ever since. With Core Duo CPUs, small and large portables alike are inching closer to their desktop PC brethren in providing more processing muscle.
Though AMD and Intel continue to duke it out in the desktop PC arena, that same battle has not been waged among notebook systems--until now. AMD's plans for a mobile dual-core processor center around the Turion 64 X2, which was not available as of this writing, but should be appearing in notebooks this summer.
Intel offers mobile dual-core CPUs in two separate lines: Core Duo T processors for mainstream notebooks, and Core Duo L low-voltage CPUs for ultraportables. Core Duo CPUs include a 667-MHz frontside bus, support for faster memory matching the bus speed, a new 945 GM/PM chip set, and a 2MB Level 2 cache.
As with desktop CPUs, doing a perfectly fair comparison between single- and dual-core notebooks is almost impossible. But our tests of notebooks using Core Duo CPUs have suggested significant improvements in performance over laptops that rely on single-core processors. For instance, we ran our WorldBench 5 test suite on a Dell Inspiron XPS M1710 using a 2.16-GHz Core Duo T2600 processor and 1GB of RAM, and it notched a score of 106, placing a solid 7 percent above the 99 score of a single-core 2.13-GHz Pentium M 770-equipped Micro Express Z3300 notebook using 1GB of RAM.
Granted, the Dell unit is a performance-oriented desktop replacement fitted with all the bells and whistles a dedicated gamer could dream of (and comes with a price tag to match: $3860).
Is it possible to find dual-core horsepower in a value notebook? The answer is yes, though certainly not as much power as a desktop PC or a high-end notebook provides. I looked at an HP Compaq nc6400 portable with a 1.83-GHz Core Duo T2400 and 512MB of RAM. It earned a WorldBench 5 score of 84, placing below the value desktops in this review but still ranking on a par with similarly configured notebooks.
At $1549, the nc6400 costs a bit more than the value desktops we saw--and its midrange features lag behind theirs, as well. It uses integrated Intel 950 graphics and has only a 60GB hard drive and a DVD-ROM/CD-RW optical drive. But this business model differentiates itself in other ways, providing a fingerprint reader, a nice 14.1-inch wide screen, and a manageable 5.1-pound weight.
Truly value-priced notebooks--those that cost $1000 or less--using Core Duo processors are not yet available. For the time being, if you want a bargain notebook, you'll have to settle for a model carrying a single-core processor.
Kalpana Ettenson
Dan Sommer has covered consumer and enterprise technology products and services for more than 20 years. Kalpana Ettenson and Tom Mainelli are senior editors for PC World.
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