Filed under: Laptops

Well, that didn’t take long. Shortly after a shiny new Core 2 Duo-equipped MacBook Pro arrived on their doorstep, the folks at iFixit lovingly cracked it open so you don’t have to. There aren’t a whole lot of surprises under the hood — unless you haven’t already heard about a certain undisclosed bonus — but if you want to see where all your hard-earned money went up close, they’ve got the pics to satisfy you.

[Via Digg]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Filed under: Laptops

No model number here or anything, that would be way to convenient, and we’re pretty sure we’ve seen this OEM look before, but Korea’s Wolf-N-Fox is busting out a new Core 2 Duo lapster, and we though we’d let you know all the same. The 15.4-inch laptop sports a WSXGA+ resolution (1,680 x 1,050), and runs a 1.66Ghz C2D T5500 processor, with 1GB of RAM, an 80GB HDD, CD-R/DVD combo drive and Intel 945GM graphics to round out the specs. It’s a reasonably sized unit, at 1.3 inches thick and 5.7 pounds, especially considering the disc drive is swappable for an extra HDD if it strikes your fancy. Price isn’t too bad either, at around $1150 US.

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Filed under: Laptops, Tablet PCs

If you thought the bevy of Merom-based laptops coming at you had finally stalled, well, maybe it has — but HP Compaq’s tc4000 tablet PC has arrived (albeit fashionably late) with spec-bumped innards that include an Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz T5600 processor. Aside from the Merom boost, this convertible also packs 512MB of DDR2 RAM, a 12.1-inch XGA display, 5,400RPM 80GB hard drive, 56k modem, gigabit Ethernet, 802.11a/b/g, biometric fingerprint sensor, and a 6-cell battery. It comes fully prepared for that stylus abuse thanks to the included Windows XP Tablet Edition 2005, and sports the usual complement of ports: VGA out, S-Video out, microphone in, headphone jack, IR, and a trio of USB 2.0 connectors. If you’ve somehow held out on those Merom-powered laptops and just can’t resist the allure of taking notes on an LCD, the tc4400 is available now for $1,479.

[Via Laptoping]

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SPONSORED BY: BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time.

Filed under: Laptops, Tablet PCs

If you woke up this morning craving a bit of Merom juice in a 12.1-inch tablet then check the TravelMate C210 from Acer. Like the C200, the “Vista Premium Ready” C210 features a sliding-track to easily move from slate-style tablet to keyboard mode. Inside you’ll get a range of Intel’s new Core 2 Duo procs, 256MB GeForce Go 7300 graphics, 802.11a/b/g WiFi, up to 4GB of DDR2 memory and 160GB “or higher” (whatever that means) disk, and fingerprint reader for a bit of security when left behind at happy hour. Slap in an optical drive and 6-cell battery and you’re looking at a 5.5-pound tablet. Sorry, no ship date or price yet but you can expect this to cost about the same as the C200 it’s replacing, or about $1900.

[Via laptoping]

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Filed under: Laptops

No surprises here, but Dell is fleshing out their Core 2 Duo processor upgrades with two more Inspiron laptops, the E1505 and E1405. The cheapest of the cheap is a E1505 running a 1.66GHz T5500 processor for a mere $729 — after the $100 instant rebate — but speeds scale all the way up to the 2.16GHz T7400. The E1405 starts at $779 — again, with a $100 instant rebate — with the same range of processors. Other specs include a 60 or 120GB HDD, combo drive or DVD burner, and your pick of Intel 950 integrated graphics all the way up to a NVIDIA GeForce Go 7300 card with 256MB of memory. Both laptops also have an option for an 802.11n card, along with Bluetooth, and both still have a Core Duo option if you’ve got a hankerin’ for Yonah. All configurations should be available now or soon from the Dell store.

Read – Inspiron E1505
Read – Inspiron E1405

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Filed under: Desktops

You know how the industry loves a good Apple rumor or two (or ten, or a thousand), but when you start getting some synchronicity between the menagerie of rumor sites out there, it’s bound to rise to the top. Today’s hit: September will see the entry of a 23-inch iMac, as well as a line revamp for the all-in-ones over to Merom Core 2 Duo mobile (i.e. not desktop) processors. (Our staff of twelve interns gave it a quick mock right upstairs there.) We’ve seen our fair share of Merom launches this week, so it stands to reason that if the spec bump is on target, then the MacBook Pro may get that upgrade as well — certainly Apple wouldn’t want to feel left behind now that they’re competing mano-a-mano with all those PC manufacturers, now would they? Oh, and while we’re at it, we’ll tack on one more for ya: at the same time, reports are starting to come in regarding sly Mac mini upgrades from Core Solo to Core Duo processors, perhaps in anticipation of bumping those specs up a little, too. Apple has indeed been known to upgrade to their customers’ pleasant surprise (see: MacBook Pros going up with nary a word, for example), but then again perhaps they’re just out of the Core Solo parts, and needed to get those units out the door.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Read – 23-inch Merom iMacs (via MacRumors)
Read – Mac mini

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Filed under: Laptops

You probably thought we were done with this latest volley of Merom-powered laptops. Ha — you were wrong. Next up to board the Core 2 Duo train is Velocity Micro’s 15.4-inch NoteMagix L80 “Ultra Notebook Computer,” which adds T5500, T5600, T7200, T7400, and T7600 options (ranging from 1.66GHz to 2.33GHz) to the already available suite of regular Core Duo and Celeron M configurations. So besides the latest processors, what makes this model so “ultra”? Well first of all, it ships with a 256MB nVIDIA GeForce Go 7600GS card standard — a refreshing change-up from the usual integrated graphics we see around here — plus an option to bump the LCD resolution up to 1,680 x 1,050 from a ho-hum 1,280 x 800. You can also cram in as much as 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a 7,200 RPM 100GB hard drive, and dual-layer DVD burner, with WiFi, a card reader, and three USB 2.0 ports part and parcel of any configuration. Available immediately, you can pick up a decently-speced L80 for about $1,655, but of course for the one we’d want, pricing is a little closer to $2,600.

[Via laptoping]

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Filed under: Laptops

So, now that you’re totally and completely freaking sick of hearing about the Core 2 Duo mobile (aka Merom) laptops that were launched today, perhaps it’ll interest you to find out exactly how well these machines perform compared to their original Core Duo counterparts? Well, without taking away too much of the reason to hit the PC Perspective benchmark bonanza that pitted the Core 2 Duo T7600 against the Core Duo T6700 — both today’s and yesterday’s 2.33GHz Intel Core chips — we can tell you that the performance was in all cases better, though not typically much more than marginally so. Under heavy load Core 2 Duo was only 2 to 6 degrees cooler (and even in some cases hotter) than the Core Duo, though in one test it did score an entire half hour more battery life. So what have we learned? Well, you can walk — don’t run — to pick up your Merom laptop, if at all. Us? We’ll be fine with our Core Duo (even our Pentium M) machines a while longer yet, thanks; somehow we don’t think that 2 or 3 degrees of heat shaved off the top is really going to finally help us conceive.

[Thanks, Mark W.]

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Filed under: Laptops

Mmmm, that tasty Samsung Q35 just went Core 2 Duo. And from the looks of things, that’s the only change you’re gonna see; same 12.1-inch widescreen display, 80GB SATA disk, up to 1GB memory, and integrated Intel graphics swaddled in a sleek, 4-pound ultra-porable. Still, while the new proc won’t be any more efficient with the juice than the Q35′s former Core Duo, that promised 20% boost in performance ain’t chicken feed. Most of all, kudos to you Sammy for not calling this the World’s Smallest Core 2 Duo laptop held by a prostrate, shoeless waif. Nice to see a bit of restraint on this one. Also announced is the less interesting 15.4-inch, R55 with that same 1.8GHz T5600 Core 2 Duo proc, disk, and RAM but with GeForce Go 7600 graphics for that extra bit of oomph. Stay tuned for the deluge of Core 2 Duo lappies to come dear readers.

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Filed under: Laptops

Well, it’s officially late August, meaning that the bit of buffer between Intel’s Core 2 Duo desktop and mobile launches should be over any day now. Word on the street is Monday’s locked and loaded for a barrage laptop releases with their latest powerhouse dual core mobile processor — the one some may still know as Merom — on board. (And thus, we ask for your forgiveness in advance when we have a slew of laptop write ups early next week.) In other words, if you were considering snatching up a laptop this weekend — PC or Mac — you’d probably be best off waiting until at least next weekend to do it; who knows what kinds of goodies we’ll see in a couple days, right?

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Filed under: Laptops

If there’s anything we’ve learned about Apple, it’s that when Stevie J. takes the stage, expect the unexpected. This time, unfortunately, the unexpected took the form of significantly fewer real announcements than had previously been prognosticated by man; still no iPhone (figures), still no iTunes movie support (same); neither were very surprising, but we were really taken aback when Apple didn’t give their MacBook Pros some Core 2 Duo processor upgrades, being that every other laptop manufacturer has either done it or is lining it up. So, be that as it may, it should come as no surprise that the Commercial Times is supposedly reporting Asustek and Quanta are prepping to ship somewhere to the tune of 200,000-300,000 MacBook Pros and MacBooks with Core 2 Duo as of next month. Will it happen? Well, Apple is due for fall consumer product announcements (last year’s was in October), so this is one we’re not counting out.

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Filed under: Laptops

A few spicy tidbits have been showing up on Dell’s websites pointing to some Core 2 Duo releases sooner rather than later. Their UK website lists Core 2 Duo versions of their XPS M1210, M1710, M2010 and Inspiron e1705 and e1505 laptops, while the US support site mentions a BIOS update to allow current owners of those laptops to upgrade to Merom processors. So far there isn’t any official word from Dell on any such upgrades, and you’ll have to call up Dell in the UK to try and finagle those Core 2 Duo models, but it seems like Dell fans aren’t going to have to wait too long to get some of that next-gen Intel action.

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Filed under: Desktops

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Intel's been busy in the realm of multi-core processors lately, first unveiling their quad-core replacement for the Itanium Montecito, named Tukwila, and today -- taking a page out of MC "2 Legit 2 Quit" Hammer's book -- renaming the next-gen mobile Merom and desktop Conroe dual-core chips "Core 2 Duo." What's more, the company announced that another version of the processor will be released for performance junkies, called, not surprisingly, "Core 2 Extreme." As for Tukwila, the deets on this server-targeted chip came to light thanks thanks to a little digging by Real World Technologies, who found a set of slides that Intel recently presented on the topic at a conference in Asia. According to RWT, Tukwila will run at an estimated 40 gigaflops, sport 6MB of L3 cache for each core, and feature other additions that IT-types will likely be into, including an on-die FB-DIMM memory controller and Common Systems Interconnect (CSI) router. First called "Tanglewood" and scheduled for a 2007 rollout, Tukwila will now be released in 2008 and go head-to-head with other enterprise offerings from Intel and Sun, probably making it an exciting year for those aforementioned IT-types.

Read- Core 2 Duo [Thanks, Dave Z.]
Read- Tukwila [Via The Register]