Intel launches 2.4GHz Mobile Pentium 4

INTEL RELEASED SEVERAL new processors and a new chipset for notebook computers Tuesday, making them immediately available in systems two days after Intel lowered prices on its Mobile Pentium 4 processors.

The 2.4GHz Mobile Pentium 4 Processor-M is available Tuesday morning in notebook machines from Gateway and Dell Computer, based on information obtained from the companies' Web sites. Intel also added two new Ultra Low Voltage Mobile Pentium III processors, and three varieties of Mobile Celeron processors to its roster of products, it said in a release. The new Intel 852GM chipset for notebooks comes with integrated graphics and support for USB (universal serial bus) 2.0 ports.

It's tough to find signs of growth in the PC industry, but notebooks are a bright spot. Sales of notebooks grew between 10 percent and 15 percent during the recent holiday selling season, and steady growth should continue throughout 2003, said Stephen Baker, director of research at NPD Techworld in Reston, Va.

Intel is poised to capitalize on that trend with its new mobile processors, and will also launch its Centrino platform for notebooks in the first half of this year. Centrino combines a new processor built specifically for a mobile environment with wireless Internet chips based on the 802.11b standard.

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