Intel offers handheld battery life boost
Published: 29 Jan 2003 16:09 GMT
Handhelds running Intel processors are likely to get a charge from a new chip.
The chipmaker has developed a new XScale PXA processor, which is meant to improve the battery life of devices while doubling -- from 100MHz to 200MHz -- the speed at which the processor can communicate with other components within the device, such as memory. The XScale PXA255 is the successor to the current PXA250 and will come with the same clock speeds: 200MHz, 300MHz and 400MHz.
The chipmaker has already sent samples to its customers, and the chip is expected to ship in high volume at the end of the quarter. Details of the chip cropped up late on Tuesday on handheld enthusiast site Pocket PC Thoughts.
Mark Miller, a Intel spokesman, confirmed the details about the PXA255.
"These are part of standard improvements that we make to our products for customers," Miller said.
He added that no formal announcement of the chip is planned.
The PXA255 chips are designed to improve battery life for devices in all performance states -- from sleep to run. They aren't expected to cost more for XScale customers than PXA250 chips and are set to replace PXA250 chips in devices from Sony, Toshiba and Hewlett-Packard.
Intel is also working on a processor for mobile phones, code-named Manitoba, that is set to be announced by the end of the quarter. Manitoba integrates flash memory, a digital signal processor and an XScale processor core onto a single chip. Manitoba will help in the development of phones that let people wirelessly access the Web and play audio files, as well as make basic phone calls.
To find out more about the computers and hardware that these chips are being used in, see ZDNet UK's Hardware News Section.
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