Dell Precision M6500

Dell on Tuesday introduced a laptop for graphics professionals and researchers who need a high-performing desktop replacement powered by Intel's fastest Core i7 quad-core mobile processor.

The Precision M6500 is available with a Core i7-920XM Extreme Edition chip and up to 16 GB of DDR3 memory. In addition, the system is available with either 32-bit or 64-bit versions of Windows 7, Vista, or XP; or 64-bit Red Hat Linux 5.3.

The M6500 is for running computationally intensive applications found in 3-D animation, computer aided design, engineering, scientific exploration, and defense. The system would compete with HP's EliteBook line of mobile workstations.

The system is available with the Nvidia Quadro FX 3800M graphics processor, which features 128 parallel computing cores, 1 GB of DDR3 memory, and 64 GB per second of graphics bandwidth. Other graphics options include the Nvidia Quadro FX 2800M and the ATI FireProM7740 from Advanced Micro Devices.

Other options include an edge-to-edge, 17-inch LED screen with user-selectable color gamut support. The system is also available with up to three internal storage drives and a choice of security features, such as a fingerprint or smart-card reader.

The Precision M6500 has a starting price of $2,749.

Dell launches its latest mobile workstation a couple of months after Intel released its Core i7 quad-core processors for laptops. Unveiled at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco, the chips are based on the chipmaker's current 45-nanometer Nehalem microarchitecture.

Unique features include turbo-boost technology that increases the clock speed of individual cores in a processor to dynamically meet workload demands. The core frequency is increased at intervals of 133 MHz until the upper limit is reached.

Besides Dell, computer makers offering mobile products with Core i7 chips include HP, Asus, and Toshiba.