Intel hopes to give ultrathin laptops a kick in the pants with an updated line of Core processors.
The ultrathin laptop, also known as ultra-low voltage or ULV, debuted last summer, supposedly to feed a demand for thin, lightweight, energy-efficient computers that are larger and more powerful than netbooks. Back when Intel was still putting its Core 2 Duo processors in most laptops, ultrathins packed single-core CPUs, or dual-core processors with low clock speeds.
Intel now reckons that the category is due for an upgrade, ZDNet reports. The new chips use a 32 nm process that is smaller and more efficient than the current generation, and include processors ranging from Celeron all the way up to Core i7. Intel says graphics performance will double on the new machines, and thickness could shrink to 0.75 inches with the use of special cooling mechanisms. Acer, Asus, Gateway, Lenovo and MSI are all expected to release ultrathin laptops with the latest-generation CPUs starting in June.
The improvement in graphics performance is probably the most important thing here. Most ultrathin laptops do not come with discrete graphics cards, so even though the performance is better than a laptop, users may still have trouble with high-definition video or gaming. There are exceptions -- my Asus UL80vt can switch between Intel's integrated graphics and a separate Nvidia GPU -- but for the most part it's Intel inside. Poor graphics performance could be a sticking point for consumers, who increasingly use their laptops for HD video.
I'm glad Intel is sticking with the category and trying to make it better. Once you own an ultrathin laptop, and start getting eight to 10 hours on a charge, it's hard to go back, and easy to look down on people who lug their inch-and-a-half bricks to the coffee shop, forever tethered to a power cord. Hopefully the new chips give ultrathins the boost they need to get some market share.
