New low-voltage Core 2 Duos

The first half of 2007 will bring the release of a number of new Core 2 Duo CPUs, including the debut of low-voltage and ultra-low-voltage CPUs. Based upon the astonishing performance-per-watt success of the Core 2 Duo mobile CPUs, it's likely that these processors will offer similarly high levels of performance-per-watt as well as unprecedented battery life.

In the first quarter of 2007, Intel will release the L7400 and the L7200, the chipmaker's first low-voltage Core 2 Duo CPUs. (The company has previously released low- and ultra-low-voltage CPUs, but they were based on older Core Duo and Pentium M architectures.) Suitable for inclusion in thin and light laptops, these processors will probably run at 1.5GHz and 1.33GHz respectively. Each will have 4MB of shared L2 cache spread across two processing cores and will run on a 667MHz front side bus. At the end of Q1 or the beginning of Q2 2007, Intel will likely release the L7500 (1.6GHz) and the L7300 (1.4GHz), which will also have 4MB of shared L2 cache. In contrast to the L7200 and L7400 however, these newer mobile processors will run on the new 800MHz front-side bus.

In conjunction with the release of the Centrino Pro platform, Intel will release its first ultra-low-voltage processor, the U7500. Early reports indicate that this is a 1.06GHz dual-core processor with 2MB of shared L2 cache that operates on a 533MHz front-side bus. (While Centrino Pro processors are capable of running at a front-side bus speed of 800MHz, the U7500 runs at only 533MHz to conserve power and battery life.) The U7500 will likely make its debut in ultra-portable laptops in the three-pound range.

New high-end, mid-range, value Core 2 Duos