Merom

From Mac Guides

Merom is the codename for Intel's mobile version of the 65nm Core 2 processor line. Intel began shipping Merom to manufacturers alongside Conroe (the desktop version) on July 27 2006. Variants of Merom is used in all Macs apart from the Mac Pro.

Contents 1 Core Microarchitecture 2 Santa Rosa 3 Benchmarks 4 Core 2 Duo - "Merom" (64-bit, dual-core) 5 Gilo 6 See also

Core Microarchitecture

Like Conroe and Woodcrest, the Merom processor is based on Intel's new Core Microarchitecture.

Merom is similar to the 32-bit Core Duo (codenamed Yonah), but supports 64-bit memory addressing, 64-bit integer operations, additional registers under programmatic control when operating in 64-bit mode, larger L2 cache in the faster models, improved vector processing units (now single cycle), more advanced branch prediction, and the ability to dispatch and retire more instructions per cycle. Intel claims it offers 20% better performance at the same clock speed when compared to Yonah.

The first version of Merom is pin compatible with Yonah and backwards compatible with the Napa Centrino motherboard. To install Merom in a Napa system, the worst that would be required is a BIOS/EFI update, otherwise the processor ID might not be properly reported to your operating system. New power management features might not be fully implemented as well. Still, this did not prevent users from installing prototype and engineering samples of the chips in Macs.[1]

Santa Rosa

A second wave of Merom processors was launched in May 2007 featuring an 800 MT/s FSB and using the new Socket P. These chips are part of the new Centrino Duo platform code-named Santa Rosa.[2] Santa Rosa pairs the updated Merom with the Crestline chipset, derived from the desktop 965 series. It comes in the GM965 and PM965 versions.[3] The new platform sports 802.11n wireless, Robson flash technology, and the updated GMA X3000.[4]

Benchmarks

AnandTech has conducted some benchmarks on Merom. The benchmarks are carried out on the same laptop. The processors were simply swapped for each test. Merom worked fine in the laptop even though the BIOS did not have the proper processor ID.

Geek Patrol has conducted benchmarks of the original iMac Core Duo vs. the iMac Core 2 Duo using Geekbench. Overall Merom shows a 10% gain in performance.

NoteBookReview.com has done an exhaustive review of the Dell XPS 1710 and the Intel Core 2 Duo T7600G.

Core 2 Duo - "Merom" (64-bit, dual-core)

Model	Clock Speed	Front Side Bus	Multiplier	L2 Cache	TDP	Socket	Release Date	Price (USD)	Notes
Core 2 Duo T5200	1.60 GHz	533 MHz	12x	2 MiB	34W	Socket M	2006 Oct	?
Core 2 Duo T5300	1.73 GHz	533 MHz	13x	2 MiB	34W	Socket M	2007 Q1	?
Core 2 Duo T5500	1.67 GHz	667 MHz	10x	2 MiB	34W	Socket M	2006 Aug	$209
Core 2 Duo T5600	1.83 GHz	667 MHz	11x	2 MiB	34W	Socket M	2006 Aug	$241
Core 2 Duo T7100	1.80 GHz	800 MHz	9x	2 MiB	35W	Socket P	2007 May	$209
Core 2 Duo L7200	1.33 GHz	667 MHz	8x	4 MiB	17W	FCBGA6	2007 Q2	$284
Core 2 Duo T7200	2.00 GHz	667 MHz	12x	4 MiB	34W	Socket M	2006 Aug	$294
Core 2 Duo T7300	2.00 GHz	800 MHz	10x	4 MiB	35W	Socket P	2007 May	$241
Core 2 Duo L7400	1.50 GHz	667 MHz	9x	4 MiB	17W	FCBGA6	2007 Q2	$316
Core 2 Duo T7400	2.16 GHz	667 MHz	13x	4 MiB	34W	Socket M	2006 Aug	$423
Core 2 Duo T7500	2.20 GHz	800 MHz	11x	4 MiB	35W	Socket P	2007 May	$315
Core 2 Duo T7600	2.33 GHz	667 MHz	14x	4 MiB	34W	Socket M	2006 Aug	$637
Core 2 Duo T7600G	2.33 GHz	667 MHz	14x	4 MiB	35W	Socket M	2006 Dec	?	Overclocks to 3.16 GHz[5]
Core 2 Duo T7700	2.40 GHz	800 MHz	12x	4 MiB	35W	Socket P	2007 May	$529
Core 2 Duo X7800[6]	2.6 GHz	800 MHz	13x	4 MiB	44W	Socket P	2007 Q3	$851	Page 1 News[7]
Core 2 Duo X7900	2.80 GHz	800 MHz	14x	4 MiB	44W	Socket P	2007 Aug	?	Page 1 News [8]

Gilo

Gilo is the successor to Merom. It is based off of the 65nm process and reportedly a multi-core mobile processor. Speculation points to a quad core processor. [9]

See also

• Penryn