Pentium M

Introduced in March 2003, the Pentium M is an x86 architecture microprocessor designed and manufactured by Intel and forms part of the Intel Centrino platform. The processor was originally designed for use in laptop personal computers, thus the "M" for mobile. It was codenamed "Banias" before its introduction. The codenames of the Pentium M are all locations in Israel, the location of the Pentium M design team.

Related Topics:
2003 - X86 - Microprocessor - Intel - Centrino - Laptop - Personal computer

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The Pentium M represents a radical departure for Intel, as it is not a low-power version of the desktop-oriented Pentium 4, but instead a heavily modified version of the Pentium III design (itself based on the Pentium Pro core design). It is optimised for power efficiency, a vital characteristic for extending notebook computer battery life. Running with very low average power consumption and much lower heat output than desktop processors, the Pentium M runs at a lower clock speed than the contemporary Pentium 4 desktop processor series, but with similar performance (e.g. a 1.6 GHz Pentium M can typically attain the performance of a 2.4 GHz Northwood Pentium 4 (400 MHz FSB, 100 MHz quad-pumped) with no Hyper-Threading Technology).

Related Topics:
Pentium 4 - Pentium III - Pentium Pro - FSB - Hyper-Threading Technology

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The Pentium M couples the execution core of the Pentium III with a Pentium 4 compatible bus interface, an improved instruction decoding/issuing front end, improved branch prediction, SSE, SSE2, and (from Yonah onwards) SSE3 support, and a larger cache. The usually power-hungry secondary cache uses an innovative access method to avoid switching on any parts of it which are not being accessed. Other power saving methods include dynamically variable clock frequency and core voltage, allowing the Pentium M to throttle clock speed when the system is idle in order to conserve energy. The latest innovation in this department is also the incorporation of the SpeedStep 3 technology which has enhanced sleep stages in comparison to the previous versions of SpeedStep. With this technology, a 1.6 GHz Pentium M can effectively throttle to clock speeds of 600 MHz, 800 MHz, 1000 MHz, 1200 MHz, 1400 MHz and 1600 MHz. The existence of these intermediate clock states allows the CPU to better throttle clock speed as per requirement. Another remarkable feature of the Pentium M is its extremely low power dissipation which varies from as low as 5W when idle to only 27W on full load. This feature is extremely useful to notebook manufacturers as it allows them to bundle the Pentium M into thinner, lighter and smaller notebooks.

Related Topics:
SSE - SSE2 - SSE3

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Although Intel has marketed the Pentium M exclusively as a mobile product, two motherboard manufacturers (AOpen and DFI) developed and shipped Pentium M compatible desktop boards in late 2004. An adapter, the CT-479, has also been developed by ASUS to allow the use of Pentium M processors in selected ASUS motherboards designed for Socket 478 Pentium 4 processors.

Related Topics:
AOpen - DFI - ASUS - Socket 478 - Pentium 4

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Pentium M processors are gaining a lot of attention from the embedded systems industry. The low power consumption of the Pentium M allows the design of fanless and highly miniaturized embedded PCs, such as the Toradex Midget (95x70x15 millimeters). In conjunction with the Intel 915GM Northbridge, which comprises up to four lanes of PCI Express, the Toradex Midget computer module delivers very high data throughput rates of up to 4x2 Gigabits/s.

Related Topics:
Embedded systems - Toradex - Northbridge - PCI Express

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