Intel’s 2011 Cedarview CPU 10-15 percent faster than Pineview

Those hoping that Intel’s next generation of Atom processors will see a spike in clock speeds will be disappointed. Fudzilla is reporting that the Intel Atom Cedarview processors, due to launch in 2011, will see clock speeds just 10-15 percent above that for Pineview.

Intel Atom Pineview processors are set to launch in the New Year, with the mainstream processor being the 1.66GHz N450 Atom. However, it’s worth remembering that the Cedarview speed increases will come with a lower thermal envelope. The chips will also support a maximum resolution of 1080p@120Hz or 2560×1600@60Hz along with HDMI 1.3a, DisplayPort 1.1a as well as older VGA interfaces.

Packard Bell unveils dot S2 & XS Butterfly netbooks

Packard Bell is set to release a new 10.1-inch netbook called the dot S2. This model will be powered by Intel’s upcoming N450 Pineview Atom processor, 1GB RAM, 160GB HDD and Windows 7. Given the Windows 7 support it’s strange why Packard Bell hasn’t opted for a higher capacity 250GB HDD.

Other features include a multi-touch touchpad, Wi-Fi, webcam and Dolby Sound. The Packard Bell dot S2 will be available in two colours, Night-sky Black and Cherry Red when it launches early next year. It’s price is expected to fall between €250 to €300. Read more

Lenovo Pineview-powered 10-inch netbook hits FCC

Lenovo is set to launch a new 10.1-inch netbook based on the new Pineview Atom processor according to a new listing over at the FCC. The Ideapad netbook, codenamed FL5-B3, sports a 1.66GHz N450 Atom CPU, 2GB RAM and a 250GB HDD.

It is interesting to see the netbook armed with 2GB RAM, which likely means that it will come with Windows 7 Home Premium, given the licensing restrictions over Windows 7 Starter. The 10.1-inch display has a resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels and 5,400RPM hard drive.

It uses a chiclet keyboard and, unusually, the touchpad has no buttons that I can make out. Apart from that, the design is mostly similar to existing Lenovo Ideapad netbooks. It does have glossy internals though, making this a fingerprint magnet. This model will probably make an appearance at next year’s CES trade show in January.

Via Wireless Goodness [via SlashGear].

Intel plans “fast transition” to next-gen Pine Trail platform

Intel will be moving quickly to its next-generation Atom platform for netbooks & nettops, dubbed Pine Trail according to sources at X-bit labs. They managed to get hold of a document that says: “Intel is planning for a fast transition to Pine Trail. To generate excitement for the platform ahead of launch, Intel is planning a press release in late December publicly disclosing the details of the platform.”

Further details on the Pine Trail platform (and Pineview processors) are expected on 21st December. Manufacturers are expected to have products using the new chips, including the 1.66GHz N450 Atom, at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2009) from 4th January.

The new Pineview processors are built around a two-chip platform. The Pineview processor features a CPU, GPU and memory controller on a single die. Combining this with Intel’s Tiger Pint I/O is what makes up the Pine Trail platform. The benefits of moving from 3 chips to 2 chips are power efficiency, lower costs that enable more fanless netbook designs. The specs and price-points of the various chips are as we have seen before; check them out after the break. Read more

Asus planning big line-up for CES 2010

Asus will be showing off a number new of devices come next January’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. We will get the first glimpse of the company’s 1.66GHz Intel N450 Atom-powered netbooks, the 10-inch Eee PC T101 convertible tablet, as well as several smartbooks and ultra-thin devices.

It will also be showing its first entry into the e-book reader space with a 9-inch model along with several Google Android-powered smartphones (only the Acer Liquid has been announced right now). Asus’ 1.83GHz N470 Atom netbooks will not be presented until CeBIT 2010 in March.

Via Digitimes.

Nvidia ION 2 set to launch by end of year?

We are only now just starting to see Nvidia’s ION chipset hitting netbooks and the general consensus appears to be that it was well worth the wait (despite a hit to battery life). However, Fudzilla is reporting that ION 2 is scheduled to launch before the year is out and will deliver twice the graphical power of its predecessor.

I’d take the news with a pinch of salt as Nvidia would no want to cannibalize sales so soon after ION’s launch. Personally, I’d be surprised if we saw ION 2 netbooks before Q2 2010. The interesting part is that we are expected to see switchable graphics next year that will allow you to disable the Nvidia GPU to preserve the battery when not needed. That could be a real killer feature for netbooks going forward, marring an uncompromised computing experience with strong battery life.

In other news, Fudzilla is also reporting that netbooks based on 1.66GHz Atom Pineview processors will see their Intel suggested retail price drop from $299 to $249-$299. Whether this translates to cheaper netbooks for the end-consumer remains to be seen.

Intel’s 1.86GHz N470 Atom CPU expected in March 2010

Up until now, the 1.66GHz N450 Atom processor has been the only Pineview processor for netbooks that has been leaked. Many of you were disappointed that Intel didn’t up the clock speeds on the next-generation Atoms.

Well according to Fudzilla, a 1.86GHz N470 Atom is also on the pipeline and is expected to launch in March next year (the N450 is rumoured to launch in January). The N470 Atom will cost $75, placing it $11 more expensive than the N450 at $64. It will be interesting to see the take-up of both of these new chips given that the N270 is selling for just $44.

Intel’s Atom N450 processor launches on January 3rd?

The next-generation Pineview processor used in netbooks, the Atom N450, will launch on 3rd January according to Fudzilla. It will also be the day that Intel will announce other new chipsets too. The 1.66Ghz N450 will sell for $64 at launch, around $20 more expensive than the popular 1.6Ghz N270 Atom.

The new Pineview processors are built around a two-chip platform. The Pineview processor features a CPU, GPU and memory controller on a single die. Combining this with Intel’s Tiger Pint I/O is what makes up the Pine Trail platform. The benefits of moving from 3 chips to 2 chips are power efficiency, lower costs that enable more fanless netbook designs.

Asus Eee PC T101H debuting with N450 Atom in January?

There has been little word regarding the 10.2-inch big brother to the 8.9-inch Asus Eee PC T91 convertible netbook. The Asus Eee PC T101H seems to have been in a state of limbo, whilst the company decides whether it worth green lighting the netbook or not. However, according to NetbookNews.de, it is on its way, expecting to make a formal appearance at CES in January 2010 and sporting a 1.66GHz N450 Atom Pineview processor.

The T101H is expected to come with a 10.2-inch resistive touchscreen display (mo multi-touch here) along with Windows 7. It will come with 1GB RAM, 16GB SSD, Wi-Fi (Draft-N), an accelerometer and a battery life good for 8 hours.

Options will include 3G and DVB-T digital TV. Pricing is expected to be between €650-€700. Not cheap considering that there is likely to be devices with multi-touch displays probably launching in the same time frame.

Next-gen Intel Pineview processors won’t come cheap

Intel is set to launch official details on its next-generation Pineview Atom processors at the Intel Developer Forum on September 22nd. This should include the full family of chips targeted for netbook/mobile devices as well as pricing.

Fudzilla has pre-empted the pricing announcement, claiming to have details on the price of both the 1.66GHz N450 Atom and 1.83GHz N470 Atom processor. Whilst, it’s not surprising to learn that the faster N470 will cost $75, I did expect the N450 to a bit cheaper than the quoted price of $64.

This compares to the current most popular CPU for netbooks, the 1.6GHz N270 Atom, costing just $44. This means that newer netbooks will be tangibly more expensive than current netbooks based on the inclusion of Windows 7 and the newer Intel Pine Trail chips.

Intel’s N470 Pineview Atom CPU has 1.83GHz clock speed

Up until now, only one next-gen Pineview processor has been revealed – the 1.66GHz N450 Atom. However, Fudzilla is reporting that this will be accompanied with a faster N470 processor that has a 1.83GHz clock speed. The N470 Atom is expected to hit select netbooks during the first quarter of next year.

As with the N450, the N470 is a single core processor that supports hyper-threading. The Pine Trail chipset has a TDP of 6.5W, whilst this is more than double that of the N270, you have to remember that Pine Trail includes an integrated IGP on the same silicon. Hopefully, we’ll have more details at Intel’s Developer Forum (IDF) from 22-24 September.

HP & MSI planning Pineview-powered tablet netbooks for H1 2010?

Both Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Micro-Star International (MSI) are planning to launch convertible netbooks during the first half of 2010, according to Digitimes. MSI will be launching a 10-inch tablet netbook at the start of 2010, whilst HP plans a similar release for April/May 2010 manufactured by OEM Inventec.

The report says that both convertible netbooks will use Intel’s next-gen Pineview N450 Atom processor. It’s therefore very likely that they will be powered by Windows 7, taking advantage of the operating system’s touch features. It also says that Asus will be launching its 10-inch Eee PC T101 tablet netbook with Windows 7. The report goes on to say that Apple may be launching its tablet device as early as November 2009.

Via Electronista.

Atom N450 Pineview CPU pricing unveiled

Pricing for Intel’s next-generation Pineview Atom processor has been revealed by Fudzilla. The 1.66GHz N450 Atom will cost $64 at launch, placing it $20 ahead of the popular 1.60GHz N270 CPU. This also puts it in line with the energy-efficient 1.60GHz Z530 at $65, which is rumoured to be axed for netbooks by the end of the year.

The N450’s price also sits unfavourably with the nettop dual-core 330 processor, which costs only $43. However, it is still cheaper than the CULV chipsets that costs $106. The report claims that the Atom N450 will launch in January 2010.

Looking at the pricing I can see, why some manufacturers may be hesitant to be moving over to new hardware. This price hike, along with the extra cost of Windows 7, means that these netbooks are likely to come at a tangible premium over current N270 XP-based models.

Intel denies axing Z Atom processors for netbooks

Intel has responded to last week’s rumours that it would stop supplying the energy efficient Z-series of processors (mainly 1.33GHz Z520 and 1.60Ghz Z530) to netbook manufactures. The company flatly denies that this is the case.

“Rumours of ‘industry sources’ stating that Intel is no longer taking orders for Atom Z processors or ending production by end of year are 100% inaccurate,” a spokesperson told Reg Hardware.

So there you go, current netbooks using these chips such as the Asus Eee PC T91 &1101HA, Dell Mini 10 and the Sony Vaio P are safe for now. We still can’t see any new netbooks using this CPU once Pineview is out though. The N450 (1.66GHz) will be marginally faster than the Z530 Atom and should be more power efficient. The decision over which to use will mainly come down to cost, (If Intel are still supplying them by then).

No more netbooks with Intel Z Atom processors?

Netbooks will stop featuring the energy efficient Intel Z Atom processors, like the 1.33GHz Z520 and 1.6GHz Z530, according to a report from Digitimes. Apparently, Intel has informed all of its customers that it will no longer be accepting orders for these processors if they are to be used in netbooks. The company will still fulfil orders already made by netbook heavyweights such as Asustek, Acer and Micro-Star International (MSI).

Intel wants to completely end the supply of the Z Atom CPUs before the end of 2009. It wants to clearly define the netbook and MID segments and wants these chips to be used in MIDs only. Intel has made the move before completely running down its inventory levels. Read more

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