Intel Introduces One Gigahertz Mobile Pentium III Processor

March 19, 2001 -- Intel Corporation today introduced the mobile Pentium® III processor at 1 Gigahertz (GHz) featuring Intel SpeedStep™ technology, the worlds fastest processor for mobile PCs. The new mobile processor is designed for full size and thin-and-light notebooks, the most popular categories for mobile PCs.
Over 20 new notebooks will be available by leading PC makers including: Acer America Corporation, Compaq Computer Corporation, Dell Computer Corporation, Fujitsu Corporation, Gateway Inc., Hewlett-Packard Company, IBM Corporation, NEC Corporation, Sony Corporation and Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc.

Intel also introduced the mobile Pentium III processor at 900 MHz with Intel SpeedStep™ technology and the mobile Intel® Celeron processor at 750 MHz.

"In only ten years, Intel mobile processors have gone from 20 MHz to 1 GHz, crossing a major performance threshold for mobile PCs," said Frank Spindler, vice president and general manager of Intel's Mobile Platforms Group. "Notebooks based on Intel's mobile Pentium III processor at 1GHz are available in volume by leading PC makers, providing users with un-compromising performance for anytime, anywhere computing."

Performance with a Purpose
Intel's mobile division was created in 1989 with three goals in mind: develop lower power processors that are smaller than their desktop counterparts, build a PC chipset business and find more ways to add value to mobile PCs. In 1990, Intel announced its first mobile microprocessor, the Intel 386SL. This processor ran at 20 MHz, operated at 5 volts,had 855,000 transistors and was based on 1micron process technology. Mobile PCs of this time typically had 20 MB hard drives, 8 inch screens with 2 color text, weighed between 8-13 pounds and cost as much as $8,000.

Since then, Intel has developed numerous mobile processors with industry-leading performance and innovative mobile processor technologies. These include: Intel QuickStart technology to instantaneously start-up or power-down the processor to its lowest power levels, voltage regulating technology, clock gating, deep-sleep states, state-of-the-art packaging and the Intel SpeedStep™ technology to dynamically switch clock frequency and voltage, providing two modes of operation for maximum performance while conserving power. Today's mobile Pentium III processor runs at speeds up to 1,000 MHz (or 1 GHz) representing 50 times more performance over the first mobile processor. The mobile Pentium III processor at 1 GHz operates at 1.35 volts in Battery Optimized Mode, has 28 million transistors, and is based on 0.18 micron technology for industry leading performance and lower voltage operation. Today's mobile PCs commonly have 20 GB hard drives, 128 MB memory, 15 inch color screens, weigh between 4.5 and 6 pounds and cost as low as $2499. As the mobile computing leader, Intel has continually delivered innovative technologies to maximize performance and minimize the power consumption to help grow the mobile market.

Notebooks based on Intel's mobile Pentium III processor at 1 GHz provides users with great performance to take advantage of media-intensive Internet sites and advanced applications such as digital photography, video encoding and decoding, digital music, voice recognition, 3D gaming and emerging wireless technologies such as 802.11 and Bluetooth wireless technology.

Specifications and Pricing
Intel's new mobile Pentium III processor at 1 GHz featuring Intel SpeedStep™ technology delivers the best performance and lowest power consumption for full size and thin-and-light mobile PCs. In Maximum Performance Mode the processor runs at 1 GHz and operates at 1.7 volts. In Battery Optimized Mode both clock frequency and voltage are scaled down and the processor runs at 700 MHz, at 1.35 volts, while consuming less than 2 watts of average power. The processor is based on the 0.18 micron process technology, features a 100 MHz system bus; 256 Kilobyte full-speed Advanced Transfer Cache; Advanced System Buffering; and Streaming SIMD extensions for higher system performance.

Additionally, Intel will offer boxed versions of its mobile Pentium III processor at 1GHz featuring Intel SpeedStep™ technology to enable system integrators who configure build-to-order mobile PCs. Build-to-order mobile PCs based on Intel's mobile Pentium III processor at 1 GHz will be available from the notebook manufacturers including: Asus, FIC and Mitac.

In 1,000-unit quantities, in Ball Grid Array (BGA) and Pin Grid Array (uPGA) packaging, the mobile Pentium III processor at 1 GHz and 900 MHz featuring Intel SpeedStep™ technology, and the mobile Intel Celeron processors are priced at $722, $562 and $170, respectively.

Intel, the world's largest chip maker, is also a leading manufacturer of computer, networking and communications products. Additional information about Intel is available at www.intel.com.

Source: Newsstream