Intel takes raw core power to notebooks

Stan Beer
Monday, 16 July 2007 19:57

Your IT - Home IT

If you were thinking that notebooks may be a little lightweight for your gaming needs, think again. Intel has just announced a new dual core chip that may turn the heads of even hard core gamers.

The new Intel Core 2 Extreme X7800 mobile dual-core processor has had both cores running at 2.6GHz, which will no doubt have already well utilised dual core notebook fans working overtime, as well sucking the juice out of batteries faster than a V8 goes through a gallon of gasoline. Still, if you want play games you have to suffer the pains and the word is that we may see the first souped up notebooks hit the market before the month is out.

The notebook processor is one of a number of new chip announcements from Intel, which is keenly aware that smaller rival AMD will soon be releasing its long awaited Phenom quad core processors, which will feature four cores cast on a single die. AMD has boasted that Phenom will smoke anything that Intel has in the performance stakes.

In addition to its new notebook hot rod dual core processor, Intel has announced its Core 2 Extreme QX6850 quad-core processor for desktops running at 3.0GHz.

Renewed competition between Intel and AMD in the high end performance stakes over the next two months will be welcomed by gamers and pricing competition between the two chip makers will be keen.