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Updates to Intel's vPro desktop platform and details of Centrino Pro laptops are expected at next week's IDF

Intel is expected to detail forthcoming new platforms and technologies at its Intel Developer Forum (IDF) in Beijing next week. Among topics the firm is expected to cover are updates to its vPro desktop platform and details of its new Centrino Pro laptop brand. Meanwhile, AMD is preparing its quad-core chips and said these will outperform Intel's while offering better power efficiency.

Intel will later this year update its vPro desktop platform. Codenamed Weybridge, this is expected to feature built-in filtering of incoming network traffic to provide basic protection against malware, and Intel's Trusted Execution Technology, which provides an isolated environment for sensitive applications and data.

The chipmaker is expected to unveil more details on its forthcoming Centrino Pro laptop platform, which brings some of the features of vPro to mobile PCs. Intel will also at IDF showcase Wireless USB technology, which promises to offer the speed of current USB 2.0 peripherals but uses a short-range radio link, doing away with the need for cables.

Separately, AMD said that its quad-core chips, codenamed Barcelona and due in mid 2007, will outperform Intel parts, especially where virtualisation is used for server consolidation.

Giuseppe Amato, AMD's European technical sales director, said that each core has its own L2 cache plus a larger shared L3 cache, which is much more effective than the single shared L2 cache in Intel chips.

Each core can also be throttled back independently depending on its workload, making the chip more power efficient. The quad-core chips will fit the same power envelope as current dual-core chips, AMD said.