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Intel: Our new display tech will give laptops smartphone-like 28-hour battery life

Intel's new technology promises to slash the amount of power that laptop displays consume.
Written by Liam Tung, Contributing Writer

Video -- Optane DC: Intel unveils persistent memory DIMMs.

With Arm saying its CPUs will soon be up to scratch with Intel i7 performance, Intel now claims its new display technology will give Intel PCs a smartphone-like battery life.

At Computex 2018, Intel teased its new Lower Power Display Technology, its answer to breaking past the battery life available on most laptops and 2-in-1s today of around 12 hours.

As 'always-on' 4G PCs start to emerge, battery life is one area where mobile computing could improve significantly. And, as Intel pointed out, the display is the main source of battery consumption.

See: IT pro's guide to the evolution and impact of 5G technology (free PDF)

Intel's technology is featured in an LCD panel being made by Sharp and Innolux that they knocked down from a two-watt display to a one-watt display, cutting power consumption by half. Intel boasted that this could deliver an extra four to eight hours on a system.

The company showed off a standard Dell XPS 13 with a Core i7 8th Generation CPU that it says lasted 20 hours on a charge. A Dell XPS 13 with the new screen lasted 25 hours, while a prototype Intel device lasted 28 hours.

But as CNET reports, the optimized screen also needs Intel's power-management system, and only works with Intel's integrated graphics. So anyone who prefers Nvidia or AMD graphics is out of luck.

Intel unveiled its display tech as rival mobile chip maker Arm eyes a bigger slice of the Windows PC and Chromebook market.

Arm last week boasted that its next-generation chips will have "laptop-class" performance, signaling a major boost for the next batch of Windows 10 on Arm PCs, which currently deliver a 20-hour battery life but suffer from slow performance given their price of $599 to $999.

Arm execs said 2019's Arm Cortex-A76 CPU has a 35 percent better performance over the current Arm CPUs. For Windows 10 on Arm PCs, the company says its performance will match Intel's top Core i7 processors.

Previous and related coverage

Windows 10 on Arm, Android phones: Our new CPU will match Intel Core i7, says Arm

Arm thinks its new Cortex-A76 CPU will close the performance gap on Intel's high-end CPUs, which could be a game-changer for Windows 10 on Arm devices.

Windows 10 on Arm: Tests say Snapdragon 845 could bring big speed boost

This year's Windows on Arm PCs could be a more compelling purchase thanks to the Snapdragon 845.

Intel teases 28-hour laptop battery life. Here's what you need to know (CNET)

Seriously impressive, even if caveats abound.

How 64-bit app support could make ARM-based Windows PCs more useful for business pros (TechRepublic)

The platform previously only supported 32-bit apps, but a new SDK will open up the possibility for 64-bit apps.

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