What is Centrino?

The term Centrino is often confused with being a type of processor. It partially has to do with the processor, but includes more than that. In reality, the word Centrino is an Intel marketing brand which consists of a group of chips, one of which is the Pentium-M processor. The other essential components include the Intel 855 chipset and the 802.11b wireless card. It is these three components which make up a Centrino laptop.

You may have noticed some laptops out there which seem to have all the requirements of a Centrino based laptop yet are not called Centrino. This is usually because the wireless card used is not the exact same Intel brand. The components have to be precise. Otherwise, it cannot be labeled Centrino. This is the case for IBM's line of laptops which use different wireless cards or none at all and cannot be considered Centrino.

In summary, Centrino is just a branding for a group of Intel chipsets that offer low power consumption and wireless networking built-in. So whenever you see a Centrino laptop and a Pentium-M laptop, think no more about it. There is no difference as far as the processor is concerned. It is usually just the type of wireless card that is used or the lack of one.