Ian Grayson06 February 2008, 12:00 AM
Intel has unveiled a new CPU that needs only a tenth of the power of current models. Ultramobile computing is about to get interesting.
 Intel's Silverthorne processor |
Chip giant Intel has taken the wraps of its Silverthorne processor which it has designed from the ground up for the emerging portable and ultra-mobile computer segment.
It is an entirely new design based on the tried and true x86 architecture, using 45-nanometer manufacturing techniques. Silverthorne is attracting a lot of attention because it can run while consuming less than one watt of power. This makes its thirst some ten times lower than the Dothan processor which is currently being used by makers of tiny portable PCs.
The chip has captured considerable attention at the rather blandly named Sold State Circuits Conference being held this week in San Francisco.
According to technical papers released at the event, Silverthorne will happily work while drawing as little as 600 milliwatts of power. As more is demanded of it, power consumption can increase to a maximum of 2 watts which will allow it to operate at a speed of 2GHz.
The design of Silverthorne also allows it to support hyperthreading which allows more than one thread of code to be executed at the same time, even though the chip has only one core.
Intel is targeting the new chip at what it sees as the growing market for small form factor PCs that run Windows XP or Vista. Although early examples of this niche have yet to find widespread acceptance, Intel remains convinced that market demand exists.
The company plans to release the chip to manufacturers later this year with the first devices expected to hit the market soon after.
Despite its impressive achievements, Intel did not have all the show glory to itself. Rival Texas Instruments described a new chip designed for mobile phones. The processor uses just 500 miliwatts of power yet can decode MPEG4 video while also handling 2G and 3G wireless connections.