Centrino 2 Exposed: A Name Deserved?

Core 2 Duo: From V8 To Twin-Turbo V6

Cutting Fat, Adding Horsepower

The 65 nm Core 2 Duo (Merom) family that originally drove Intel’s Santa Rosa platform did well enough for a 65 nm part, offering 4 MB of L2 cache and 800 MHz front side bus speeds. However, those 34 W parts were akin to power-hungry V8 engines, serving up plenty of performance at a cost to battery mileage.

Now, don’t get us wrong. Intel is still alive and well at the 35 W TDP level with Centrino 2. The shift to 45 nm has done wonders for the chip’s energy efficiency, though. So, while all five Montevina-certified Core 2 Duo processors employ a brand new 1066 MHz front side bus setting, three of the five models feature 25 W TDPs. At 25 W, the Core 2 Duo comes across as more of a turbo V6, sipping fuel as it serves up performance.

From an architectural perspective, there’s nothing particularly groundbreaking about the new Core 2 Duos. They’re divided up into two families: T9xxx and Pxxxx, with the former featuring a 35 W ceiling and the latter ducking in at 25 W. Both the 2.8 GHz T9600 and 2.53 GHz T9400 boast 6 MB L2 cache repositories, while the P8600 (2.4 GHz) and P8400 (2.26 GHz) feature 3 MB caches. The one outlier is Intel’s Core 2 Duo P9500, running at 2.53 GHz, armed with 6 MB, and inside the 25 W barrier. That’s the chip we’re more excited about.

Mobile gamers have a sixth option, though it’ll be pricey at $851 in 1000-unit trays: Intel’s Core 2 Extreme Mobile X9100. The Extreme chip runs at 3.06 GHz, has a 1066 MHz bus, and includes 6 MB cache. Naturally, its 44 W TDP will probably require extra concessions for cooling — even more so when you consider the chip isn’t constrained by a locked clock multiplier. Notebook overclocking? Sure, why not? No doubt enthusiast-oriented notebook vendors will build well-ventilated platforms around the X9100, assuming it inherits the scalability already associated with Intel’s 45 nm Penryn design.

A handful of other enhancements offered by the desktop Penryn processors have found their way into these mobile Core 2 Duo chips as well. For instance, Intel claims the High-K 45 nm process is instrumental in minimizing leakage, thereby improving battery life. A deep power down (C6) state, which turns off caches, the core clock, and PLL, yields a significant reduction in idle power. And Dynamic Acceleration Technology boosts the operating frequency of one processor core in single-threaded applications when the other core is idling. The result is an optimized operating mode that does not negatively impact the chip’s thermals, but does help it push through demanding applications faster.

Chris Angelini
Chris Angelini is an Editor Emeritus at Tom's Hardware US. He edits hardware reviews and covers high-profile CPU and GPU launches.
  • santos79
    The Montevina chipset also introduces support for 8GB of RAM. IMO that's a major advantage of the Centrino2 and should have been mentioned in the article.

    While 4GB more than enough for now, it might not be enough in 2-3 years.
    Reply
  • silversound
    Thats nothing close to a revolutionary upgrade like the core2 from pentium4, only FSB and some memory upgrade on the motherboard; PC6400 is so last year for desktop. Certainly do not deserve the name change, i think just a marketing attempt try to stimulate the sales.
    Reply
  • snarfies1
    Lot of exposing going on today, lol...
    Reply
  • cangelini
    silversoundThats nothing close to a revolutionary upgrade like the core2 from pentium4, only FSB and some memory upgrade on the motherboard; PC6400 is so last year for desktop. Certainly do not deserve the name change, i think just a marketing attempt try to stimulate the sales.
    Yeah, fairly underwhelming overall--at least until we see hardware from Intel.
    Reply
  • mrmessma
    I would like to point out that a Z06 gets better mileage (city and highway) than a GT-R, V8 vs TT V6, while both having very comparable power and lap times depending on the track style. Just putting it out there, because I know quite a few were thinking it. Haha.
    Reply
  • cangelini
    mrmessmaI would like to point out that a Z06 gets better mileage (city and highway) than a GT-R, V8 vs TT V6, while both having very comparable power and lap times depending on the track style. Just putting it out there, because I know quite a few were thinking it. Haha.
    I'd argue that it depends on how you're driving the car ;-) I have a much easier time burning through a tank in my V8 than I ever did the bi-turbo V6.
    Reply
  • mrmessma
    Ok, yes many V8 suck a lot of gas often being paired to heavier vehicles. But I would still wager a quality V8 vs a quality twin turbo V6 have very similar appetites. A very nitpicky thing to say, I will admit.
    Reply
  • cangelini
    mrmessmaOk, yes many V8 suck a lot of gas often being paired to heavier vehicles. But I would still wager a quality V8 vs a quality twin turbo V6 have very similar appetites. A very nitpicky thing to say, I will admit.
    No worries ;) More than anything I was trying to make a brute force vs. finesse analogy--probably could have picked a better subject, but I'm a car guy.
    Reply
  • JonnyDough
    "The Lost World (what a horrible sequel that was)."

    I'm sorry, is this a blog?

    If you're going to put your opinion about all sorts of silly things in articles, then please post the article as a BLOG and not some type of news story. I think we (the readers) have been over this.
    Reply
  • cangelini
    JonnyDough"The Lost World (what a horrible sequel that was)."I'm sorry, is this a blog?If you're going to put your opinion about all sorts of silly things in articles, then please post the article as a BLOG and not some type of news story. I think we (the readers) have been over this.
    Thanks for the feedback!
    Reply