The OFFICIAL Montevina / Centrino 2 Thread

It's release at Computex Taipei is coming up very soon...and I think I'm not the only one waiting for an XPS line refresh with this. I hope we can use this thread to share news, benchmarks, or just general talk about the new platform.

I know I'm definitely excited having seen some X4500 benchmarks already Low power and decent performance, wawhoo (Decent=not crazy gaming, but fine for CAD, 3D mathematical analysis, watching movies on the go with low battery useage)

...for all those in the dark: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montevina#Montevina_platform_.282008.29

 

Decent... performance? Are you seriously expecting gaming capabilities from an IGP? Sure it's more powerful than the current X3100, but it's by no means a gaming card.

 

im with you on the refresh. can't wait for montevina and 9 series gpu.

 

Nooooooooo!! Don't show me this!

Don't make me regret about purchasing my M1530 now

 

Hope I cleared things up for you.

 

it isn't going to be that drastic jin. calmmdown breath in... breath out. lol anyways ur fine. only additions will be support for faster ram and new gpus and cooler operation.

 

You're not gonna regret your purchase now, those montevina chipsets are going to be quite costy when they come out. Then when they finally become cheap, a new one comes out...a neverending cycle

 

after montevina comes capella with support for VERY fast ram at like 1600mhz ddr3

 

haha which we'll be laughing at in three years.

Ain't technology grand?

 

You wont regret it the 1530 is great

 

What I want in the M1330's replacement:

• Intel P Series processors as main choices, have T9400 and T9600 as top choices
• Top of the line Nvidia 9300 or low end 9500, top end X4500 (the performance one)
• 160GB hard drive standard, cheaper SSD drives
• 2GB DDR2-800 Ram standard with DDR3 options
• Bluetooth 2.1 (obviously will be available)
• 1440X900 LED screen option

 

With you all the way!! I'd scoop me one up with an x4500 and P9500 without batting an eye. Should actually be lighter too, form factor for P series is smaller

 

nope your going to regret it big time. you can't play pong at all. if you play pong, your expensive comp will blow up like marshmallow in microwave. just messin with ya. itll be fine.

 

your right about the 3 year thing but well all be dead to laugh about this ina hundred years. lol

 

I am persoanlly waiting for the Latitude E6500, just hope it doesnt cost an arm and a leg.

 

is that supposed to mean something?

 

yeah to the guy that that he is going to regret that he bought his m1530

 

m1535
montevina proc
bluetooth 2.1
9700m GPU
1000 ethernet
high res LED 1680*1050 ro higher

 

I think I might actually keep my m1530 for at least another 2 years, this thing is awesome.

 

I kinda regret getting my M1530 but I kinda dont.. I guess I will know when I see how much the montevinas cost.. If it is not much more than the one that I just ordered.. I will try to do a return and buy the new montevina..

 

You have 20 days to return from your ship date. I heard rumors that the XPS refresh might be coming around September or October. It all depends I guess.

 

21 days and a 15% restocking fee + lost shipping costs. Its not even close to worth it.

 

Seriously? 15% restocking fee... Hmm that sucks, well i guess i better off staying with it.. Montevina is not gonna be that much better.. My next laptop can be a octa-core laptop

 

LOL And I was thinking I'd regret getting my laptop (below)

 

Seriously, RAM is gonna keep getting better and better, there is no point in worrying. Clock speeds and such will continue to increase, there is really no need to get Montevina UNLESS you want killer battery life. If you don't, think of it this way. Even though its Santa Rosa and Penryn, you are able to get the BEST of Santa Rosa and Penryn for a killer price. Or, you could wait a year after montevina releases and get a deal with that.

Though the wait and possible delays... may kill you. (jk)

Point of it is, you are better off getting the best now, then upgrading when Calpella comes around since by then there will be even more power saving, and RAM upgrades and clockspeed upgrades that are better than montevina.

 

I'm holding out for Montevina and the 'Centrino 2' badge based on the platforms inherent support for GigE, Wimax and Displayport through the certification. Three things I deem worthy of the wait at this point in order to prolong the life of my investment.

I'm also hoping for an internal Blu-Ray drive (M1330) to compliment that HDMI output.

 

Yeah i dont really care for the Montevina anymore, it will be alittle faster and it will be more expensive, now when the new XPS M1530 comes out with a new look, then im gonna want it lol.. (Probably not cuz im gonna love mine )

 

The Montevinas will cost "more or less" the same as the Santa Rosas did when they were ah, "brand spanking new" and they will be just as good of a deal as a one-year old Santa-Rosa-tech based 1330/1530 when they've been on the market for a year, etc.

It will always boil down to when you need it and what you need it for and of course, how heavy your piggy-bank is at any given moment...

I may eventually upgrade my 1330 with a Penryn but otherwise that 1330 should satisfy my mobile-computing needs for some time to come. As a matter of fact, I still don't use 802.11n or a Gigabit Switch in my home and I can't even find a broadband (WWAN) card on the (local) market so as far as I'm concerned, my 1330 is still future-proofed

 

Actully, the most big move about the Montevina / Centrino 2 is DDR3 support. So use it, you can buy the DDR2 667 first and then waiting for the DDR3 cheaper enough to replace them. And for the GPU, we still don't know when will come out the 55nm serial... So just wait for the Montevina, that's enough for next month.

 

The lower end 9 series should be launching about the same time as Centrino 2. And, actually, another big thing about Centrino 2 is the lower power usage processors, meaning you get same or better performance as current penryns, but power usage as good as the old Pentium M's.

 

and that is why I am waiting for Montevina to replace my i8600

 

the only thing i want in a xps refresh is probably the better battery life in [the possible] montevina upgrade

 

Yea, the battery life will be niceee...esp at a zero performance decrease (probable increase). I just want my m1330 refresh with some nice dell coupons so i can be a happy camper. Just pray it's not a GL-40 chipset so we can get blu-ray playback with the x4500 integrated graphics

 

How about Puma platform by AMD? is it as good as the Montevina platform?

 

No idea, personally I've lost faith in that brand and its products currently. Suffice to say I've not heard anyone online or off talking about it.

 

maybe the Montevina will be used in 1730 first, we will know that next month.

 

If you don't already own a laptop, buy your m1530's now before you wait too long and get old. You will not regret it once you lay your hands on it. The price of Montevina's will be really high, and who knows if Dell will still offer a lower priced penryn m1530. If you want to spend ~$1.3k on a very nice laptop, I suggest you buy with a coupon before prices skyrocket.

 

I'm with you. I can't wait for a hands-on report. Do you plan on getting the 1440x900 LED-illuminated display option?

 

Unfortunately Dell hates Canada (we dont get coupons) so there are no price savings up here

 

i'm not gonna buy till th cappella platform, montevina will be outdated like half a year after it comes out. cappella will ditch the FSB and go with a newer tech called quickpath and has an absolutely new architecture. montevina= improved penryn. capella= OMG bowdown to me power.

 

I'm waiting for Calpella too, but you are wrong. Centrino 2 is here to stay for at least 12 months! Calpella will not be out until summer or fall 2009.

 

Everyday I come here I'm reminded about how I should have bought back in April when they were dirt cheap. I was considering holding out for a refresh or the new platform but I'll be moving out on August 15th and I can't start school without a laptop. I figured the Centrino 2 would make the laptop cheaper so I was considering holding out all summer.

 

Um, they do have a coupon that is expiring tomorrow for 25 percent off you know. You are NOT going to see any deal of such magnitude once Centrino 2 comes out. Sure to the manufacturers they cost about same, but they will not make it "dirt cheap". As always, new technology will be expensive but existing tech will be dirt cheap before they are replaced. It is not wise to hold out all summer.

 

So the P9500 should be a 325$ upgrade from the base price....not TOO shabby, but sad considering the cost of the upgrade is close to the new price of the processor damn retail!

I'm dying to hear the bechmarks between P9500 and T9400. Should be somethin!! The day i see that is the same day i'll be placing my order. Come on dell...send out some pre-release m1330's already!!

Show us how you made them thinner and lighter with montevina

 

decided to just buy montevina refreesh m1530, can't wait for capella, maybe ill sell my m1530 on ebay when calpella comes!

 

Pshh, there isn't a montevina refresh out yet. It might not be out until October. Happy waiting.

 

then i'll just get a cheaper m1330 system in june[vs in march...].....

=D

 

You, sir, are clearly misinformed.

Unless there is a natural disaster that strikes all of Intel fabs at the same time, Montevina will be out next month as planned. Pre-release laptops have been with a bunch of people (including my company) for months. I assure you, Montevina is very much on time. Intel has not missed a major rollout date in the last couple of years. They may take out features at the last minute (WiMax out of Santa Rosa) but they will not delay the platform.

 

I think he rather meant, dell won't release a refreshed m1530 until october...

 

Also, disagree. The E-series lappys with Montevina, (Dell's business lines are traditionally slower to adopt new tech), are coming next month. XPS are supposed to be state of the and they need to keep up with the competition (can you say HP?)