Intel Pentium M 1.60 socket: Socket 479

What the Pentium M 1.60 is

The Intel Pentium M 1.60 is a 1600 MHz single-core mobile processor from March 2003. It runs one P6 Banias core at 1600 MHz with no turbo, so 1 core gives 1 thread. Cache is 1 MB of L2 with 64 KB of L1 on a 130 nm process. Power is rated at 24.5 W in a Socket 479 micro FCPGA package on a 400 MT/s front side bus with a 16x multiplier.

Top launch clocks with the full cache give the 1.60 the lead among March 2003 Banias parts, which is why it carried the highest launch price in the set. Intel launched the 1.60 on March 12, 2003 with the 1.30 to 1.50 parts. The chip supports MMX, SSE, SSE2 and Enhanced SpeedStep.

High clocks with a 24.5 W envelope suit fast Centrino laptops with DDR memory and mobile work software. The large cache trims memory stalls in office tasks. That is why the 1.60 shipped in premium business laptops with extended batteries.

Socket and motherboard compatibility

The 1.60 fits Socket 479 fast laptops with Banias support. It needs a 479-pin board with a 400 MT/s bus and a BIOS that lists Pentium M 1.60. The Socket vs chipset: what decides whether a CPU works guide covers pairing rules.

Premium DDR laptops are the natural match. Boards listing Pentium M 1.60 accept the chip with a 24.5 W pipe. Value pipes tuned only for 22 W low-clock parts may run loud, so the thermal tables decide.

Memory, PCIe and cooling

Memory is DDR through the board chipset, matched to the board slots. The CPU has no memory controller, so the chipset sets the type and speed. Premium 855 boards commonly run DDR333 paths for 1600 MHz Banias parts.

A 400 MT/s front side bus ties the CPU to the chipset, while AGP and PCI hang off the chipset. No PCIe lanes originate on the die. Cooling uses the laptop heat pipe for the exact chassis, rated for 24.5 W.

Upgrade paths

On the same socket, a move to a Pentium M 1.70 such as Intel Pentium M 1.70 keeps the laptop when the support list names it. The 1.70 adds 100 MHz at the same 24.5 W, so the pipe often carries over. A Pentium M 1.50 on the same list drops 100 MHz for slightly cooler running.

A move to Dothan Pentium M 735 at 1700 MHz doubles cache to 2 MB with lower power on 90 nm when the BIOS lists Dothan. The Socket 479 page covers the Banias to Dothan shift.