August 23, 2007 12:47 PM PDT

Quad-core Xtreme Notebook: too extreme?

Against the OEM's wishes, the Accelerator 917V features a quad-core CPU.

(Credit: Xtreme Notebooks)

After last week's post about Xtreme Notebooks squeezing a quad-core processor inside a laptop, another small laptop vendor, ProStar Computer, contacted me to say such a feat is impossible. In his email, the ProStar rep claims that Clevo, the manufacturer of the chassis used in the Xtreme Accelerator 917V, has not approved any quad-core processors for use inside the Clevo D900C. To my eyes, it looks like the Accelerator 917V uses the gray D901C chassis. Either way, the product pages for both Clevo chassis list the supported CPUs as Core 2 Duo E6300/E6400, E6600/E6700, and the Core 2 Extreme X6800. No Core 2 Quad in sight.

I contacted Allen Hsieh, Clevo's Director of U.S. Sales, who told me that, indeed, it's true--the company has yet to approve quad-core chips for this platform. I can see why, as a quad-core desktop chip runs hotter than a more efficient laptop part with fewer cores and a lower clockspeed. Then again, the supported Core 2 Extreme chip is clocked at 2.93GHz, which is higher than the either of the Core 2 Quad chips, the 2.4GHz Q6600 or the 2.66GHz Q6700, Xtreme Notebooks offers on the Accelerator 917V. Plus, if Xtreme Notebooks is willing to assume the risk of selling (and supporting) such a system, what's stopping them?

When I contacted Xtreme Notebooks regarding this matter, the company's president, Steven Nichols, assured me that he is selling this quad-core laptop and has already, in fact, shipped a number out to customers. And he promised that CNET would have a review unit in its labs within a couple weeks.

While it appears the Accelerator 917V is for real (it's listed for sale here, after all), I would urge a little caution to those considering this system, since the OEM of the chassis hasn't approved anything more than a dual-core CPU. We'll know more once we're able to run the Accelerator 917V through our tests and get a feeling for its stability. It's not like you're running any software that's crying out for four processing cores anyway. Give it a couple of weeks and hopefully, we'll have a full rundown of its performance and thermal output.

Matt Elliott, a CNET editor since 2000, heads up coverage of computer hardware, from desktops and laptops to their assorted components and peripherals. Prior to joining CNET, he worked for PC Magazine. When not writing about computers and wrestling with their shipping boxes, he likes shooting with his Nikon D50 camera. Matt is also skilled with a tape gun. E-mail Matt.