32nm in the spotlight

Intel to preview new Core i3 chips this week.

Thursday will be a big day for Intel, when it shows off what it will be selling next year.

It will be the first time that Intel will show its next-generation 32nm chip technology.

The chip maker's preview of its latest Core I series of processors is a precursor to the Consumer Electronics Show in January. Based around the Nehalem microarchitecture, the new chips will be a step up from the ones released this year.

It is expected to preview its first Core i3 processors including the 2.93GHz Core i3 530, which has appeared on retail sites already, as well as updates to its Core i5 series processors.

Another chip Intel is expected to show off is "Arrandale", which is the first mainstream Intel laptop package to put two processor cores and a graphics function together in one chip module.

Arrandale will come out under Intel's Core i3, Core i5, and Core i7 brands, and initial versions are expected to appear as Core i3 and i5 parts.

We are expecting to see Intel install its Turbo Boost technology into more Core i5 and i7 processors. Turbo Boost speeds up and slows down individual cores when needed to save on power.

There probably will also be something said about Intel's Pine Trail Atom chip technology for netbooks.