http
/www.tomshardware.com/news/Cougar-Point-Sandy-Bridge-B3-Stepping-product-change-notification-chipsets,12184.html
There's the article from Toms that some may have overlooked. So it looks like, if the chips do start shipping Monday, people may not have to wait until the end of March or mid April to get laptops with SB chipsets.
The only thing that worries me is this statement:
"Also earlier this week, Intel said that it would continue to ship the defective Cougar Point chipsets for limited uses. The chipsets can only be applied in systems that won't be affected by the design flaw, namely "closed" notebook configurations and desktops with a SATA PCI-Express card pre-installed that provides additional SATA ports."
To me it sounds like consumers will have to dig to find out if the chipset is of B2 or B3 origin to avoid receiving a B2 chipset. Kind of like the old Xbox 360 switch where people had to look at the serial number on the box to avoid the old Red Ring of Death chipset.
Eitherway, I figured I'd post this info for those trying to decide between waiting or buying now. Looks like your wait time got cut in half. But, like I said, you may have to specifically ask about the chipset when purchasing now.
/www.tomshardware.com/news/Cougar-Point-Sandy-Bridge-B3-Stepping-product-change-notification-chipsets,12184.htmlThere's the article from Toms that some may have overlooked. So it looks like, if the chips do start shipping Monday, people may not have to wait until the end of March or mid April to get laptops with SB chipsets.
The only thing that worries me is this statement:
"Also earlier this week, Intel said that it would continue to ship the defective Cougar Point chipsets for limited uses. The chipsets can only be applied in systems that won't be affected by the design flaw, namely "closed" notebook configurations and desktops with a SATA PCI-Express card pre-installed that provides additional SATA ports."
To me it sounds like consumers will have to dig to find out if the chipset is of B2 or B3 origin to avoid receiving a B2 chipset. Kind of like the old Xbox 360 switch where people had to look at the serial number on the box to avoid the old Red Ring of Death chipset.
Eitherway, I figured I'd post this info for those trying to decide between waiting or buying now. Looks like your wait time got cut in half. But, like I said, you may have to specifically ask about the chipset when purchasing now.
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