PC Vendors Eyeing the MacBook Air’s CPU?

It seems PC vendors are envious of the MacBook Air's custom CPU, which is smaller and cooler than counterparts. But will it matter with Intel's next generation coming soon?

One of the interesting revelations that came with Apple’s recently-announced (and now shipping!) MacBook Air was that the Cupertino computer maker essentially went to Intel and said “Hey, build us a smaller CPU. What you’ve got isn’t cutting it.” So Intel fabbed a special part just for Apple, a custom-built version of the company’s 65nm Core 2 Duo processor that’s some 60 percent smaller than its standard-sized counterparts and consumes just 20 Watts of power, compared to a typical Core 2 Duo’s 35 Watts. The move marked the first time Intel has built a small form-factor CPU from a standard-size mobile processor.

Now, it seems other PC makers want to get their hands on the part, with PC Advisor claiming at least two other PC makers will be using the same processor that’s in the MacBook Air to drive their own offerings. The Merom-derived Macbook Air processor runs at eight 1.6 or 1.8 GHz with the Intel 965GMS chipset and integrated graphics, making it a good candidate for subnoteboooks and mini desktops.

However, Intel’s next processor platform—the 45nm Montevina—is due to begin shipping in mid-2008 (perhaps sooner), and ought to boast performance and power consumption numbers that leave the custom Apple processor far behind. (And, indeed, the MacBook Air is getting rave reviews for many of its features, but performance is now one of them.) However, the small, power-sipping part may give some PC manufacturers a way to compete with the MacBook Air in the short term…or at least get a leg up on other PC manufacturers.