Intel's New Chips Boost Battery Life Of HandheldsIntel's New Chips Boost Battery Life Of Handhelds

Aiming to strengthen its foothold in the mobile market, Intel has introduced two chips based on its Xscale technology, designed to maximize speed and minimize battery drain.

The PXA210 and PXA250 provide notable improvements to Intel's StrongArm processor, a spokesman says. The PXA250's top speeds reach 400 MHz, compared with the fastest StrongArm, at 206 MHz. The 400-MHz processor is geared toward high-end PDAs that run MPEG videos and other complex applications. The PXA250 is also available at 200 MHz and 300 MHz.

The PXA210, available at 133 MHz and 200 MHz, is geared toward low-end PDAs and cell phones. Power optimization is key for the PXA210 -- at 200 MHz, it consumes about one-third of the power of a 206-MHz StrongArm, the spokesman says. The PXA250 is also easier on batteries compared with the StrongArm; the 400- MHz processor consumers about 30% less power than the 206-MHz StrongArm, Intel says. The chips are being shipped now to customers that include Compaq, Hewlett-Packard, and NEC, as well as companies that are interested in telematics, such as DaimlerChrysler and Johnson Controls. The chips won't be available in products until the middle of the year, Intel says.

The new Intel chips represent a significant advance in performance, says Warren Wilson, director at Summit Strategies. "I think we're seeing mobile processors move onto same kind of development track that desktop processors have been on -- leaping substantially in power and performance from generation to generation." That's critical for consumers who want to have full-color screens and complex applications on their mobile devices. Says Wilson: "I think everyone wants to get to the point where you don't have to plan your day around recharging your PDA battery."