14 DAY TRIAL // The following CPUs, Core i5-3340M, i5-3380M and i7-3540M, Core i5-3437U and Core i7-3687U, we first mentioned back in August, but details have only now been made available, so here they are.
We should start off by saying that Intel didn't directly reveal anything, at least not with any degree of loudness. Still, the specifications are mostly known now.
The Core i5-3340M, i5-3380M and i7-3540M are good for mainstream laptops, while the Core i5-3437U and Core i7-3687U are good for ultrabooks.
All of them have two cores and four threads (Hyper threading technology), but the rest of their features differ.
The Core i5-3340M runs at 2.7 GHz (Turbo Frequency of 3.4 GHz), has 3 MB of cache memory, an integrated GPU of 650/1,250 MHz, and a TDP (thermal design power) of 35 Watts.
The Core i5-3380M is a 2.9 / 3.6 GHz chip, but it is otherwise identical to the one above.
Core i5-3437U is the ultrabook chip, so it is slower (1.9 / 2.9 GHz, 350 / 1,200 MHz GPU) yet less energy-demanding (17W TDP).
Next up is the Core i7-3540M, a 3 / 3.7 GHz processor with 4 MB cache instead of three and a 650 / 1,300 MHz GPU. The TDP is 35W.
Last but not least, the Core i7-3687U is an ultrabook chip with a base clock speed of 2.1 GHz (250 MHz for the GPU) and a Turbo Boost performance of 3.3 GHz (1,200 MHz GPU). The TDP is, again, 17W.
All the processors will be fabricated with BGA packages, meaning that they will never be possible to remove from whatever “motherboards” the laptops use, unlike LGA chips.
Essentially, these are mid-range chips that notebook makers should be able to use in their quest to make ultrabooks, and laptops in general, cheaper but not noticeably weaker or stronger than they already are.