Intel is expected to extend its new Centrino technology for laptops with new products before the end of this year. In the pipeline are faster Pentium M processors and support for a wider range of wireless LAN (WLAN) standards, according to details leaked on the Web last week.

Launched earlier this month, Intel's Centrino brand integrates WLAN capability with a mobile processor optimised for longer battery life. The Pentium M chip is initially available at clock speeds of 1.3GHz to 1.6GHz, but Intel is expected to add a 1.7GHz version in June and a 1.8GHz version before the end of the year.

The current 1.1GHz low-voltage and 900MHz ultra-low-voltage versions of the Pentium M will reportedly be joined in June by 1.2GHz and 1GHz versions respectively.

Intel has already announced that a second chip, codenamed Dothan, will be added to the Centrino line-up, and this processor is expected to feature up to 2MB of L2 cache and a faster 533MHz system bus.

Dothan is likely to appear as a high-performance alternative to the current Pentium M rather than replacing it, and may ship before the end of this year. New motherboard chipsets will be necessary to support Dothan's faster bus speed.

Laptop vendors must include Intel's WLAN hardware in order to carry the Centrino brand, but the only adapter currently available is the 802.11b Intel Pro/WLAN 2100 mini-PCI adapter. A dual-mode 802.11a/b version is scheduled for release later this year, according to Intel, and a module also supporting 802.11g is slated to appear early next year.

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