INTEL’S NEXT GENERATION CHIPSET 19/01/2005

After months of speculation, Intel has finally announced the arrival of its first mobile-specific chipset, the 915GM. To make it easier for consumers to differentiate between the new technology and the older Centrino branding, the company is referring to the chipset as being a part of Centrino 2.

Initially intended for release in 2004, the chipset was postponed, as it did not offer the improved speed benefits originally expected. Previously known by the codename Sonoma, the new technology follows the same path as the initial Centrino by offering processor, chipset and wireless solution as a branded package.

Sonoma is used with the Dothan processor, the 90-nanometer processing technology that was introduced some six months ago. At the heart of Sonoma is the new 915GM chipset, previously referred to by its Alviso codename. The main advantage of this chipset is the speed upgrade from 400MHz to 533MHz of the systems Front Side Bus. Intel is claiming that the chipset can offer a speed increase of some 33 percent over existing chipsets. The inclusion of Execute Disable (XD) support can potentially reduce security attacks on the system. PCI Express is readily supported by the new chipset, which supports faster throughput for video data, as well as supporting improved I/O connections. System’s using the new chipset will also be able to take advantage of DDR2 memory, which can offer up to 60 percent improved performance in comparison to DDR-333 memory.

Completing the three-part solution is the Intel PRO/wireless 2915ABG Wi-Fi adapter. As the name implies, this solution supports the three leading connections, offering a new level of flexibility to Intel’s wireless offering. WL spoke to Andy Greenhalgh, Intel’s European mobile marketing director, about the company’s Wi-Fi strategy. He said “Intel is working to expand the Wi-Fi coverage in the UK, as well as increasing the areas that supply it.

The Wi-Fi in Sonoma is the same as previously seen in Centrino systems. The difference will largely come from the software, whereby 802.11i ensures greater and easier security for wireless transfers.”

The one downside of this launch is that it is only currently able to support integrated graphics, with the 915PM that supports the use of dedicated graphics adapters not being made available until the second quarter of this year. While all vendors are welcoming the arrival of the new chipset, vendors and consumers alike will need to wait until the second quarter of the year to make the most of the chipset. Nick
Boardman, managing director of Rockdirect, aired the views of many when he said, “As most of our machines feature “discrete” ATi graphics, and not integrated, we will be releasing our “Sonoma” platform in Q2 2005. It will be based on the Intel 915PM version of the Alviso chipset, feature the latest generation PCI Express graphics from ATi, DDR-II memory, Serial ATA hard drives and our X-glass screen technology.”

The integrated solution used in the 915GM chipset has also received a name change, to the Graphics Media Accelerator 900 GM. This adapter offers full support for TV-out and DirectX 9 multimedia extensions. While there is still a great deal will offer up to twice the data speed currently found in it’s integrated graphics.

Commenting on graphics, Andy Greenhalgh said, “Although this will still fall short of gaming abilities, it’ll boost business capabilities to a certain degree.” Intel is further suggesting that the use of the new chipset alongside the use of the Dothan processor will offer a 10 percent increase in performance that is matched by a 10 percent improvement in battery life. “Sonoma improves battery life on a number of levels, especially through the use of Display Power Saving, whereby the laptop is able to detect ambient light levels and adjust screen brightness accordingly,” Andy Greenhalgh said.

SOLID STATE

Intel informed WL that some 125 laptop design specifications using Sonoma were currently being developed and evaluated by the leading laptop manufacturers worldwide, with some initial 75 models appearing in the first half of 2005.

While so many models are being developed, and manufacturers are working towards releasing a Sonoma based solution, it seems that final solutions are slower at coming than expected.

The first wave of releases will concentrate on existing chassis designs, such as the Toshiba Tecra M3. A spokesman for the company said, “The Toshiba Tecra M3 has been designed to be the eventual replacement to our current M2 series. Our Tecra series of laptops is designed with stability in mind. We provide a 12-month lifecycle on the range from launch, to allow customers to ‘roll-out’ the platform over a longer period without changing builds. M2 and M3 also share common docking and optical drives to allow for cost savings and improved user experiences.”

SONOMA IN SUMMARY 
* PCI Express architecture offers support for 2x I/O protocols

* Improved I/O device support for increased data transfer rates

* Display Power Saving 2, which reduces the power

* Dual channel DDR2 support for 400/533MHz memory configuration up to 2GB in size

* Serial ATA storage technology for use with faster hard disks – also supports RAID

* High definition audio, which provides support for 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound

THOSE NUMBERS IN FULL

ProcessorName	Architecture	Cache	Clock Speed	Front Side Bus
Intel Pentium M processor 770	90nm	2MB L2	2.13GHz	533 MHz
Intel Pentium M processor 765	90nm	2MB L2	2.1GHz	400 MHz
Intel Pentium M processor 760	90nm	2MB L2	2GHz	533 MHz
Intel Pentium M processor 755	90nm	2MB L2	2GHz	400 MHz
Intel Pentium M processor 750	90nm	2MB L2	1.86GHz	533 MHz
Intel Pentium M processor 745	90nm	2MB L2	1.8GHz	400 MHz
Intel Pentium M processor 740	90nm	2MB L2	1.73GHz	533 MHz
Intel Pentium M processor 735	90nm	2MB L2	1.7GHz	400 MHz
Intel Pentium M processor 730	90nm	2MB L2	1.6GHz	533 MHz