Intel's powerhouse chip heads to laps everywhere.
If you demand the most powerful computing device possible for the average consumer right now, you're pretty limited to a Core i7 desktop-only solution. That's not to say that the Core 2-based laptops aren't speedy, but they're starting to show their age compared to the cutting edge of performance.
Thankfully Intel has stepped in to fix that gap, bringing the laptop and desktop computers that much closer together by packing a mobile version of their Lynnfield chip into a laptop form factor. They've three models; the i7-720QM at 1.6GHz (Turbo to 2.8GHz), the i7-870QM at 1.73GHz (Turbo up to 3.06GHz) and the i7-920XM at 2GHz (Turbo to 3.2GHz).
While stock clockspeeds have been dropped compared to the desktop counterparts and most likely voltages to hit the lower TDP of the form factor, the chips retain their large 8MB L3 cache as well as their rocketing performance - benchmarked by PC PRO to be significantly faster than the current Core 2 Quad mobile chips.
Pairing one of these new CPUs with a beefy SLI setup and a 18" widescreen might see portable gaming finally becoming something more of a reality, and the gap between desktops and laptops is closing with each new generation of processing technology.
Post below if you'd buy a Core i5 lappy, and head to PC PRO to check out the benchmark results.
Issue: 133 | February, 2012