Lenovo, Fujitsu planning to use Intel's MacBook Air chip
The PC industry is wasting little time getting in line behind Apple to use Intel's spiffy new notebook chip.
Lenovo and Fujitsu plan to use the same Intel chip that helped the MacBook Air get so thin.
(Credit: CNET Networks)CNET News.com has learned that Lenovo and Fujitsu are in the process of putting together systems based on the special Core 2 Duo chip that Apple is using in the MacBook Air. The new laptops should be out shortly, according to sources familiar with the companies' plans, and will give customers a chance to see what the rest of the PC industry can do with the power-thrifty chips.
Representatives for Lenovo and Intel declined to comment, while a Fujitsu representative did not immediately return a call.
Apple asked Intel to design the special Core 2 Duo chip last year as it was putting together the design that would become the MacBook Air. The chip fits into a package that's significantly smaller than the garden-variety package Intel uses with its notebook chips, and it uses less power than the standard Core 2 Duo, allowing it to fit into the slim MacBook Air without melting the inside of the package or eating the battery.
While Apple got the scoop on that new chip--which, since the company asked Intel to build it, seems fair--Intel has other customers. After the MacBook Air was introduced at Macworld, Intel representatives said the chip would be offered to the rest of the PC industry if they were interested. And much of the technology used in the chip will become part of Intel's mainstream offerings when the Montevina platform is released later this year.
This is a chip for ultraportable notebooks, loosely defined as notebooks weighing 3 pounds or less. Those kinds of notebooks aren't for everyone, but they tend to appeal to the frequent business travelers that might already be Lenovo ThinkPad customers. Fujitsu might not be a household name in this country when it comes to PCs, but its LifeBook lineup of small notebooks and tablet PCs has been focused on small designs for several years.
The problem is that most of those notebooks use low-voltage or ultra-low-voltage versions of Intel's Core 2 Duo processors to fit into the tight spaces required by ultraportable designs. That takes a toll on processing power that could be avoided with the special Core 2 Duo chip. You'll still see sluggish performance with the special Core 2 Duo design compared to a regular Core 2 Duo chip, but not as much of a drop-off that would come along with the LV or ULV versions.
No details were available on the specifications that will come along with the new Lenovo and Fujitsu laptops, but they are expected to be out shortly. It will be interesting to see how the companies respond to the design gauntlet thrown down by Apple with the MacBook Air; they might not be able to duplicate the exact design, but they could offer features like an optical drive and a user-replaceable battery that may have some prospective MacBook Air customers hesitating before taking the plunge.
News.com's Erica Ogg in San Francisco contributed to this report.
Tom Krazit writes about the ever-expanding world of Internet search, including Google, Yahoo, online advertising, and portals, as well as the evolution of mobile computing. He has written about traditional PC companies, chip manufacturers, and mobile computers, spending the last three years covering Apple. E-mail Tom. 
Windows.... UGH!!!
Apple, again, leading the way...
was just BS or wishful thinking?
Both times, Apple has applied its technology knowledge and needs to the improvement of Intel's designs to the benefit of everyone.
I believe that we will see more of such collaborations.
What expertise did Apple share with Intel? Has Apple ever designed a chip?
Apple example: MacBook Air gains in portability but loses performance compared to the MacBook and MacBook Pro. Hard drive performance is less than stellar, ditto with capacity. Ram is maxed out and no optical. Compare that to the MacBook, with a much lower ASP to the air and similar performance; and the Pro with much more performance, and a slightly higher ASP.
I've read on numerous reviews and forums from Apple fans saying that none are intending on purchasing the Air. "Why spend a premium just to lose some baby fat?" one member wrote. With the MacBook Air weighing in around a light 3 lbs. for $1800- and the ever popular MacBook weighing in at an acceptable 5 lbs. for $1100, is 2 lbs. worth $700?
RTA:
http://www.anandtech.com/mac/showdoc.aspx?i=3203
While this is lower than the typical 35W Core2 that most typical laptops are running it isn't unheard of in the subnotebook category to see the L series chips that use 17W(slightly less than the MBA CPU) and in UMPCs you will find that the most popular processors are MUCH lower TDPs(5-10W). The Samsung Q1 has came with a number of processors, but the Pentium M models(all of the Q1Ps IIRC), which used the Pentium M 723, used 5W and that isn't even a current model! The newer units use the newer Intel A110, which is a revised version of the Pentium that has a 3W TDP! In standby the thing can go down to 0.4W!
straight from Intel if you think I am BSing:
http://download.intel.com/design/mobile/datashts/31690801.pdf
I would hate to see the battery life on the UMPCs you design! Somehow I think that they would be a bigger flop than the Macbook Air.
Not that I am going to buy a MacBook Air, but I wouldn't call the Macbook Air a niche anymore than the saying that the Sony TZ line or the Fujitsu P1620 LifeBook or Fujitsu's U810 or heaven forbid Sony's UX subcompacts. Now those are niche products. While the MacBook for most consumers and hence isn't going to be something you will see a lot at your local Starbucks, I expect that it will quickly outsell most if not all of those niche lines and maybe outsell all of those niche lines put together.
The biggest flaws with the MBA you didn't even mention: No Expresscard slot and a recessed USB port will force business customers to carry an additional USB adapter just to use a data card. For the ideal target audience this is a real annoyance. It isn't a dealbreaker, but I sure this will hurt sales when a lot of customers researching the purchase find this out. I expect that the second gen Macbook Air will resolve this by either adding an expresscard/34 slot(shouldn't take up much space on the machine) or at the very least slightly tweak the design so that USB based data cards actually fit without any type of hub or extension or adapter.
The Macbook Air is targeted towards a different audience than the MB or the MBP. It is definitely a smaller audience than the standard Macbook, but a lot of the customer buying it probably wouldn't buy the standard Macbook, which is pretty heavy for a 13.3. Most competing 13.3" models are closer to 4 pounds than 5 pounds and many are below 4 pounds. The 15.4" MBP's aren't even a pound heavier. That is quite a bit of "baby fat" if I say so myself.
I know you couldent.
So much mind power.
Just how long can the world Affairs hold me back.
I'm faster and more evolutionary than you have currently written in your words or catered for in your worlds.
I'd like to see how Sony or other brand can compete with Macbook Air size (13.3"), but still provide full feature, as expected.
The only processor that I could see OQO moving to at the moment is the processor Intel markets for UMPCs: the A100/A110 series. Samsung has been using that in their Q1 line. A few other less notable UMPCs I have used that chip as well. I wouldn't be surprised if the A110 is a little better performance wise, but I doubt it is much more energy efficient than the C7. Unless it were noticeable faster or noticeable more energy efficient than C7 I figure that OQO will stick with the C7 for the time being until either VIA brings out a revision that improves performance without noticeable harming battery life or Intel makes a new generation of UMPC processor that is significantly better than C7.
For someone familiar with the OQO UMPCs, not exactly a household name, I am surprised that you would actually want the MBA chip that would probably cut your battery life in half. On such a small display you aren't likely to play a game or do any multimedia design applications where the C7 or the A110 would be absolutely slaughtered performance wise for the MBA's smaller die C2D. Such a chip might fit in a UMPC, but whether the battery life would be long enough for most customers is another matter. The MBA's cpu has a TDP of 21W whereas the the A110 has a TDP of 3W! The power consumption isn't even comparable to the A110 or the C7 that you seem spiteful of. I will agree having used both processors before that they are absolute dogs running Vista, which is why a lot of UMPC vendors have held onto Windows XP as an OS choice for issues with battery life and far more importantly performance wise neither processor really has enough performance to run Vista at a desirable speed.
For the specs on the A110 straight from Intel:
http://www.intel.com/products/mid/ultramobile2007.htm
http://download.intel.com/design/mobile/datashts/31690801.pdf
- Lenovo ThinkPad
- by Lenovo ThinkPad February 1, 2008 3:33 PM PST
- Chip not done for Apple, Apple just happened to announce a product first. Better offerings to come.
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