Desktop chip to power Toshiba notebook
The new Satellite 1905--which the company bills as a portable desktop--uses a 1.6GHz desktop Pentium 4 processor instead of the forthcoming mobile Pentium 4-M.
But there will be a twist. The new Satellite 1905, announced Monday, uses a desktop Pentium 4 chip instead of the forthcoming mobile Pentium 4-M from Intel.
The use of desktop chips to create higher-powered, lower-priced notebooks is a growing trend among PC makers, who seek to serve PC owners looking for a second or third PC that would offer portability but not necessarily the trimmest design.
The move has also brought criticism from some PC makers who point out that desktop chips, though less expensive, typically consume more power and run hotter than their notebook-designed counterparts, making for something other than a true notebook.
Toshiba, which bills the new notebook as more of a portable desktop, plans to begin shipping the Satellite 1905 in the middle of this month for $1,999. The machine will offer a 1.6GHz Pentium 4 chip, a 15-inch display, 256MB of RAM and a 30GB hard drive, along with a combination DVD/CD-rewritable drive.
Intel's mobile Pentium 4-M is expected to make its debut, along with a slew of notebooks, in late March or early April.