In a first review of non-official pre-production samples of Intel's upcoming 65 nm single and dual-core Pentium processors, Tom's Hardware Guide discovered a substantial drop in power consumption, if compared to the preceding processor models. The advantage of the new production process reveals itself especially within full-load scenarios.

Intel has turned the corned and entered a path of shrinking power consumption. The company declared a more efficient use of power as one of the main criteria for next-generation processors at the most recent and, as it appears, will deliver on this goal. Tom's Hardware Guide, a sister site of TG Daily, was able to review pre-production samples it had received from industry sources and found a surprisingly steep drop in power consumption.

Pentium D 930 (65 nm Presler core)

Although scaling of the production process typically results in increased current leakage, Intel still achieved less overall power consumption. Tom's Hardware Guide measured the power consumption of a 65 nm Cedar Mill (single core Pentium 4) system at 166 watts at full load - which is 17 percent less than the 200 watts a 90 nm Prescott (current Pentium 4) requires. The advantage decreases in idle and BIOS modes, but the new generation was able to run more efficiently in any scenario Tom's Hardware Guide considered.

A similar environment is displayed for the dual-core processors. A 90 nm Smithfield system (Pentium D 830) swallowed 252 watts under full load, while the same system equipped with the new 65 nm Presler processor (Pentium D 930) consumed just 214 watts - which translates into savings of about 15 percent.

For details and results on platform architecture, performance and power consumption please read the reviews at Tom's Hardware Guide:

Intel Moves From Dual Core To Double Core

A Sneak Peak at Intel's 65 nm Pentium 4