Penryn comes to Dell XPS M1730
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Dell's 17-inch gaming laptop, the XPS M1730, now offers Intel Penryn processors
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Penryn is the code name given to the 45-nanometer versions of Intel's processors.
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Denying there were ever delays, and after maintaining that stance for at least a few months, Dell finally released its long-awaited XPS M1730 gaming notebook -dubbed "The Beast."
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Look for more consumer electronics products and services from the PC behemoth. Also: SuSE Linux for Dell servers.
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The recent word from The Inquirer that Apple may be hoarding all of Intel's new 45nm Penryn processors -- and possibly paying for the privilege -- has prompted a lot of speculation about the future of Apple's Mac Pro desktop lineup. Apple's professional machines, which now use Intel Xeon Cloverton chips topping out at 3GHz, are called workstations by Apple and offer quad- and eight-core configurations. They're fast, and they sport professional prices to match with top-of-the-line eight-core units starting at $3,997.The latest generation of Mac Pros, although radically restyled on the inside when Apple jumped to Intel chips in 2006, look pretty much the same on the outside as they did when they sported PowerPC chips. But the expected move to Penryn -- at or before the next Macworld show in January -- could mean the first major change in Mac Pro design in years.Penryn is Intel's first chip under 45nm (compared with the 65nm processors now used) and offers a faster front-side bus, larger Level 2 caches, better energy efficiency, and a new instruction set (SSE4) aimed at boosting media, gaming, and graphics uses.As important for Mac fans, the new chip architecture allows some new possibilities in case design -- namely because the motherboard and cooling system could take up less space. The new chips could also mean the incorporation of new technologies such as scalable-link interface (used for linking two or more video cards) and a faster front-side bus.With that in mind, let's go through some of the things Mac users -- especially this Mac user -- would like to see in the next Mac Pro:1. A new enclosure Rumors abound that the now-familiar all-aluminum Mac Pro box -- brought over part and parcel from the original Power Mac G5 -- will finally be shrinking. Of course, I still expect Apple to house all of the latest goodies, so whatever Apple comes up with isn't going to rival the Mac Mini for portability either.I'm looking for more audio/USB/Firewire ports up front with space for four 3.5-in. internal drive slots and two 5.25-in. optical drives -- which are now offered on the current crop of Mac Pros. An easier-to-open case more like that found way back on the Power Mac G4 desktops would certainly be appreciated by systems administrators, along with a reduced weight and better handles for lugging around.2. A Blu-ray option not just for movie editing but also for storing 50GB of data on a single disc -- perfect for sending off major quantities of files (high-definition movies, anyone?) to a client or user. Although I never thought I'd say it, DVDs -- even double-sided ones that can hold up to 8GB of information -- are too small. It's time for Apple to get on board with the next level of optical drives.As for using a Blu-ray drive for movies, the digital rights management associated with them might be too much to ask for. But they'd look pretty darn nice on Apple's 30-inch Cinema Display, now, wouldn't they?3. Cooler but quieter systems Those fans on current Mac Pros can sometimes be loud and annoying. Liquid-cooled enclosures, while more expensive, are a much more elegant solution. Heck, Apple even used that with late-generation Power Mac G5s, although there were some reports of leaks.If Apple doesn't want to go back to that option, then it should turn the whole case into a heat sink. Whether it's on purpose or not, my MacBook Pro sometimes feels like one well-designed heat sink.4. Less energy use I love power, but I also love clean air and Middle East peace and all of that, so Apple, while you're at it, cut down our energy usage! It's nice not to have the lights dim when I turn on the computer. This should be doable, and former Vice President Al Gore, who's on your board of directors, will no doubt approve.5. Penryn I know what The Inquirer reported, and yes, it makes perfect sense that you'd want to offer the latest and greatest from Intel to your top-end customers. What better way to run cool and cut power consumption than with a 45nm Penryn chip? These babies are fast and efficient. The first widely distributed 45nm processors, nothing comes close to them in terms of speed per watt -- the main reason Apple moved to Intel in the first place.And let's get there sooner rather than later. The Mac Pro has been out since August 2006 with only the addition of faster chips in April to update the line.6. eSATA external storage Firewire 800, first introduced in 2003, just doesn't do it anymore for high-speed external storage and is beginning to become outdated. I need more options. 3GB eSATA is coming out of the woodwork now as the new standard for super-high-speed drives even as external drives and arrays that use it are coming down in price dramatically. Fiber is nice, too, but overkill for workstations. USB3 fiber isn't ready yet; eSATA is.7. Strong video support: HDMI out How about letting users present stuff on an HDTV without having to use an adapter? This feature would cost very little, but the coolness factor would be huge, right Steve? Besides, HDMI is already available on Apple TV, so we know it can be done.In fact, while I'm wishing, why not add two HDMI out ports? Running two hi-def TVs from a Mac Pro over HDMI would be absurdly cool. This, of course, could be part of an extremely high-end video card option. I know Apple likes to have options when it comes to processors. Well, users like options when it comes to video cards. Some of us want a solid video card, while others want the absolute fastest thing money can buy. I happen to want both.8. 10GB Ethernet If not now, when? If not Apple, who? 10GB Ethernet cards are coming down in price by around $100 a pop -- and they're even cheaper when integrated on the motherboard. The prices for switches that utilize them are also coming down. Maybe Apple doesn't have to put them on all new Mac Pro models, but wouldn't they be perfectly appropriate for top-of-the-line HD video rigs? How about Xgrid? The speed certainly helps.Now, I know the question will arise: Who needs 10GB Ethernet? Something along those same lines was asked five years ago when Apple released the G4 models with 1GB Ethernet. Time flies.9. Hardware RAID standard A few months ago, Apple introduced a $1,000 add-on card that turns mild-mannered SATA ports on the Mac Pro into a hard-core RAID configuration. Now it's time to build it in.And with the ZFS file system expected to be part of the upcoming Leopard OS, RAID configurations should work even better. (ZFS, if you aren't familiar with it, offers a whole new way to handle storage, allowing large capacity, storage pooling, fast data snapshots, and copy-on-write.)10. Affordability I'm not talking $399.99 Dell affordable, but drop the barrier to entry a bit. Perhaps you can offer something under $2,000 at the low end. No doubt, some additional PC gamers and tinkerers will come into the Apple fold if you have the fastest processor and a solid video card.Oh, just one more thing: Let's not wait for Macworld San Francisco to get the next Mac Pro on store shelves. The holidays are coming, and I know of at least one computer geek who'd like to see something like this wrapped up with a bow on top.Seth Weintraub is a global IT management consultant specializing in the technology needs of creative organizations, including The Paris Times, Omnicom and WPP Group. He has set up and managed cross-platform networks on four continents and is an expert in Active Directory/Open Directory PC and Macintosh integration. Computerworld is an InfoWorld affiliate.
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Dell has won a $700 million hardware and services contract with Philips Electronics. The deal will include the sale of Dell OptiPlex desktop computers, Precision workstations and Latitude
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Dell is back in the blade server ring with the introduction of its PowerEdge 1855 blade servers. The company is hoping to prove to customers that its new blades have significant cost savings and performance
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PCIe 2.0 and Penryn - bring 'em on Review Nvidiaâs new nForce 780i SLI chipset is heavily â thatâs HEAVILY â based on the nForce 680i SLI, adding just two key new features. The first is support for 45nm Intel 'Penryn' processors and the second is the addition of PCI Express 2.0 for top graphics performance. Itâs safe to say that the 780i SLI is Nvidiaâs answer to Intelâs X38 chipset, but itâs not a direct comparison as Nvidia is sticking with DDR 2 memory instead of making the shift to DDR 3.â¦
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Dell has introduced a new line of blade servers, the PowerEdge 1855 series, equipped with dual Xeon processors. The computer maker says its blades take up less space, cost less and are more economical to operate than traditional servers.
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M6300 wants to kiss your desktop goodbye Dell is adding more power to its high-end line of mobile workstations with the debut of the Precision M6300, a 17" notebook geared at engineers, developers, video editors and others who need to tote around some serious silicon.â¦
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The world's first 45nm gaming CPU Review Intelâs 45nm 'Penryn' update for its Core 2 microprocessor family has been an open secret for many months. It's first desktop incarnation, the Core 2 Extreme QX9650, is due to be formally introduced on 12 November, but today we can tell you how it will perform.â¦
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'Not an open system' Dell is considering an authorised resellers program for Europe, after taking the plunge into the channel in the US.â¦
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In the next eight days, crews will perform tasks to prepare for the installation of a European laboratory.            Presented By     From Dell? Home!      &nbsp;&nbsp;The new Dell? Inspiron? 1520 notebook with hi-def widescreen and long-range wireless for only $799. Add mobile broadband for $150. Limited time offer. Click here. www.dell.com    Ads by Pheedo
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Ow, that hurts Want to equip your next laptop with a Flash-based solid-state hard drive? You can if you're after a Dell XPS or an Alienware m9750. Samsung said this week it's sending 32GB and 64GB SSDs to both companies. But fitting them will cost you.â¦
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Blog: Buyers of XPS systems, Dimension desktops and Inspiron notebooks will be able to opt out of most preinstalled software.
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(InfoWorld) - Dell Inc. has stepped away from long-time supplier Intel Corp., launching one desktop that spurns the chipmaker's vPro business bundle and two others that use processors from chipmaking competitor Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD). Dell will still build its new Dimension E520 and XPS 210 desktop PCs with a choice of Intel's Pentium D or Core 2 Duo processors, the company said Tuesday. But for the first time, Dell will offer a choice of AMD's Athlon and Sempron chips in the new Dimension E521 and C521 models. For its new OptiPlex 745 business desktop, Dell said it developed its own bundle of business-friendly technologies instead of using Intel's vPro platform. Intel has seen strong sales in recent years for bundles of software and hardware such as its Centrino package for wireless notebook PCs. The company launched vPro in September as an effort to extend that strategy to business desktops. The company did not rule out the chance that it might add Intel's bundle to future desktops, but said vPro had to mature first. "We'll continue to work with Intel to help them refine the technology," said Dell's chief technology officer, Kevin Kettler. He spoke during the company's annual Technology Day meeting in New York. "There's still work to be done to drive that technology as a fundamental, strong value for our end customers." He compared the current vPro bundle to early iterations of hardware-based security in Trusted Platform Module (TPM) chips. "Dell was a slow adopter of TPM, and that's not because we didn't know about them or forgot to ask about them. There are some cases where we've ultimately used a technology but waited for it to mature a little bit before adopting it," Kettler said. Dell competitors Hewlett-Packard Co. and Gateway Inc. both launched vPro-enabled desktops last week, prompting some analysts to ask why Dell was lagging despite its close relationship to Intel. The answer is that Dell was assembling its own business bundle. The company's OptiPlex 745 boosts security and eases IT management while reducing power draw. Those are the same selling points as vPro, and the Dell system even uses similar components, like Intel's new Core 2 Duo processor and a TPM security chip. The difference is that Dell chooses and integrates the remaining pieces, retaining more control over the final product. In October, Dell will add its own Client Manager module to the system, allowing IT managers to remotely boot and troubleshoot thousands of client systems from a single site. Intel does that trick with its Active Management Technology (AMT). Likewise, Dell chose its own partner for security and password protection, using Wave Systems Corp.'s Embassy Trust Suite. Dell sells the OptiPlex 745 with a Core 2 Duo E6300 processor for US$899. The XPS 210 costs $1,190 for a premium entertainment package. The Dimension E520 and E521 will go on sale Wednesday for $719 and $329, both with Microsoft Corp.'s Windows XP Media Center OS, dual-core processors and multimedia options. The Dimension C521 will cost $359 but take up just half the space compared to the E520 and E521. In another announcement Tuesday, Dell is extending its relationship with EMC Corp., adding another five years to their partnership in selling storage products such as the Dell/EMC AX100 and CX3 UltraScale networked storage systems. Together, the two companies have sold 34,000 networked storage systems to 10,000 customers since founding their alliance in 2001.
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Blog: new laptops are upgraded versions of Dell's existing workhorse models