The latest notebook chip from Intel will come out May 10, according to sources, along with price cuts and a new naming scheme.
Dothan is a new version of the Pentium M chip for notebooks. It will come with 2MB of cache, a pool of memory near the processor, and run at 2GHz, according to sources. Models running at 1.8GHz and 1.7GHz will also debut while cheaper, less speedy models will appear in June. Current Pentium M chips come with 1MB of cache and top out at 1.7GHz. The chip, originally due earlier this year, was delayed by a problem that hampered manufacture. The chip will now come out May 10, according to sources in the PC industry and analysts.
Intel does not comment on unreleased products but has said Dothan will come out in the second quarter. Although a slight oversupply of notebook chips dented Intel's revenues in the first quarter, portables remain one of the company's strongest markets. Notebook sales are growing faster than desktop purchases, a trend that has benefited laptop specialists such as
Acer, which leaped into the top five PC makers in the first quarter.
News source: C|Net News.com
