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Rumours have been circulating about Intel's latest update to its Centrino platform, and we can now reveal it in all its glory.
Codenamed Napa, the mobile platform consists of a brand new Yonah processor - the first dual-core mobile CPU.
Various versions are available, including a single-core CPU, but the one employed by this Acer notebook is the Intel Core Duo T2500. The two cores share 2MB of Level 2 (L2) cache and run at 2GHz - the fastest Pentium M is the 780, which has a single core running at 2.26GHz.
The Travelmate 8204WLMi is modelled around Acer's unmistakeable Ferrari notebooks, although the garish red livery isn't used here. The carbon fibre lid adds extra protection for the 15.4in screen, which has a native resolution of 1,680 x 1,050.
Sensibly, Acer has decided to provide the 2GHz Core Duo T2500 processor with plenty of support. The Travelmate 8204WLMi has a total of 2GB of DDR2 Ram and a powerful ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 graphics card - this has 256MB of Ram onboard and shares a further 256MB with the system memory.
With such an impressive specification, we were eager to rig the Travelmate 8204WLMi up to the test bed and run our range of benchmarks. The results were astounding, especially in the Sysmark 2004 SE test.
Previously, the fastest notebook with a mobile processor we'd seen was the Evesham Voyager C720 (read review), which notched up a score of 180 in Sysmark 2004 SE.
Impressive though this result was, the dual-core Acer breezes past this record. It cleared the 200 mark with ease, finishing with a Sysmark 2004 SE score of 231.
When you consider the Athlon FX-57 powered Evesham Decimator 78FX desktop PC (read review) achieved a score of 229 in Sysmark 2004 SE, you start to realise just how fast this notebook is.
The Mobility Radeon X1600 graphics provided by ATI can't quite match up to Nvidia's Geforce 7800 GTX mobile alternative, but the 3Dmark05 score of 4,380 indicates this Acer notebook will still be able to cope with the majority of games.
Battery life, as determined by our Mobile Mark test, sits at two hours, 53 minutes during standard usage - not bad at all considering the processor power of this notebook.
For a full breakdown of all our various benchmark scores for the Acer Travelmate 8204WLMi, and other notebook's we've reviewed, visit www.reportlabs.com.
Other notable features housed on the notebook include an integrated multi-format dual-layer DVD drive, 120GB 5,400 rpm hard drive, 4-in-1 memory card reader and a Bluetooth VoIP phone for making Internet phone calls.
You'll also find and reversible 1.3megapixel camera on the top of the lid, which will come in handy when making video calls.
Norton Anti-virus, Cyberlink PowerDVD and NTI CD-Maker are among the software titles included. Acer also ships its Empowering Technology suite, which consists of various security, recovery and power management tools.
After running this dual-core Yonah-powered Acer notebook through our benchmarks, there's no doubt that Intel's new Napa platform is the fastest mobile specification currently available.
What's more, the price tag of £1,761.33 isn't at all bad when you take into account its remarkable power capabilities. If you want desktop power on the go, this is the notebook for you.
But, as ever, if you wait a little longer you'll be able to get your hands on a faster model - a 2.33GHz Yonah CPU is expected mid-2006.
See also:
You can have the power and features of a desktop PC in a smaller package 06 Dec 2005
All Notebooks & Tablets PCs
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