Say Hello To Centrino Lite

Just as the more efficient, battery-optimized Pentium M replaced the makeshift Mobile Pentium 4, Intel Corp.'s Celeron value processor has been reborn in portable form. The new Celeron M line replaces the Mobile Celeron as Intel's CPU of choice for affordably priced, lightweight notebook PCs.

Like the Pentium M, the Celeron M is built on 0.13-micron process technology, uses a 400MHz front-side bus, and works with the i855 chipset family of Centrino fame. But the economy chip has only half as much Level 2 cache -- 512K -- and debuts at lower clock speeds: The 1.2GHz and 1.3GHz versions operate at 1.356 volts and have a thermal design power (TDP) ceiling of 24.5 watts. An Ultra-Low-Voltage 800MHz version operates at 1.004 volts and 7 watts.