Laptop Processor
They developed a thinner processor, at first 65 nm. and now 45 nm., half the thickness of the previous models. This put everything closer together and made them faster because there was less distance for signals to travel. They also run cooler and are more energy efficient. The primary power loss is in the form of heat which is generated by electrical current traveling through resistance (like in a toaster). The newest processors, the Core i7, Core i5 and Core i3 that Intel claims are the best processors for laptops are 32 nm. They have different labelling than these older processors. Intel Processor Labeling Before you start to wonder, you won't see Centrino 2 in the processor labeling. It is NOT a processor label. It is a platform (the collection of chips, etc. that make up a motherboard) label. An Intel Processor name begins with a set of words like Intel Core 2 Duo. This is the processor family name. After this there is a number which may have one or more letters in front of it. This is the processor number. The letters have meanings related to power and performance. Within a family a higher number should have more (or better) features. Then you will see a number like 2.0 Ghz. This is the processor clock speed (per core). Then there is a number like 2 Mb. This is the level 2 cache. There is also a number like 800 Mhz. This is the bus speed. For these numbers, within a family, higher should be better. The letters you will see before the number and their meanings are:
The family names you will see in Intel laptop processors are
Generally, within the same family and the same letter prefix set, processors with the same first number (for example P8xxx) will have the same bus speed and level 2 cache but different clock speeds. Core Solo and Core 2 Solo processors were U designated processors and not seen frequently in mainstream laptops. They are the only families with one core. Core Duo processors seem to have had a short life span and are also rare. Matching this families with my different types of laptop computers you will find the Celeron and Pentium Dual Core laptop processors in low entry level laptops. You will find Pentium Dual Core and Core 2 Duo mobile processors in barebones laptops. Entry level Laptops will have a Core 2 Duo as their notebook CPU. Upper level laptop computers will have a Core 2 Duo, Quad or Extreme notebook processor. AMD Notebook Processors Older AMD notebook processors were not suitable for an upper level laptop, but at least their labeling was simpler. Higher numbers within families are better. The fastest AMD mobile processors are the AMD Turion™ X2 Ultra Dual-Core Mobile processors. These are labelled ZM-8x and are suitable for a Barebones or possibly an entry level laptop. The other AMD processors are the
These processors are about the same speed as Intel Pentium Dual Core and Intel Celeron processors and are low entry level also. New AMD laptop processorsare more competitive at the high end and when they come in the AMD Fusion version in the "Vision" platform may present a real challenge to Intel. return to laptop-computers-wiz homepage
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