Intel Pentium M Processor 2.00 GHz ... only showing 797 MHz

[Slippenos]

I have a Lenovo Z60M laptop with 1.50 GB RAM and a 2.00 GHz Pentium M Processor.

I attempted to run Age of Empires 3 which requires a 1.4 GHz processor when the game alerted me how many MHz I had.

Is there a setting or a program that can lower the speed? Is there a reason why this had happened?

Weird thing is I was playing Dungeon Siege 2 maxed out on graphics ... stopped playing for a few months ... picked it up again and the speed was ridiculously slow. I piped down the resolution without batting and eye because I figured I would not be playing games again. It ran fine then ...

When I rt click on my computer and go to properties, it says:

IBM Corporation
Intel Pentium M Processor 2.00 GHz
797 MHz, 1.50 GB RAM
Physical Address Extension

Is the 797MHz my front-side bus (I don't even know what that is)?

Is there a way for me to recover this loss of almost 1 GHz?

Thanks in advance,
Mike

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[johnbullas]

http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=2690

533 MHZ is your FSB speed

The only time I ever saw a processor speed be reduced by a peripheral was with a very slow HDD

If you are tweaking for gaming, have you tried a reboot and checked the data again.. I have found AIDA32 (google it) a cheap and useful tool for getting the spec of a device.

Have you been 'playing' with the BIOS settings?

But I think you were playing the game on battery power when the laptop reduces the procesor speed to save power!!!!

John B



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===================================
Transportation Research Consultant
Winchester UK

 

[paparazi]

The Intel Pentium M is of course a mobile processor designed to be as energy efficient as possible in order to extend battery life.
I do not know the specifics of your laptop but I will just say my R60 IBM Lenovo which has a Intel Centrino Duo processor running at 1.66ghz is showing 980mhz in system properties "at this very moment in time"
So basically conserving enery/battery power as and when it can, like all modern mobile CPU's do.

Martin

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[paparazi]

Sorry, I should have said specifly that it is normal for a mobile processor to underclock it'self to conserve energy for the purpose of extending battery life.
But by how much? relating to your particular model, I do not know.
Martin

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[Slippenos]

Thanks for the helpful posts, all.

I tend to leave my battery out at all and am almost 100% using AC power- so I have no idea why my processor is underclocked.

Is there any way I can achieve the desired 2.00 GHz as I once had it? Its just such a gross difference between 2.00 GHz and 800 MHz!

I also have not touched any of my BIOS settings.

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[Slippenos]

After playing around, I clicked my 'ThickVantage' button and there was an option to 'Optimize Performance'. After doing so- I am at 1.99 GHz.

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[paparazi]

Ahhh! Brilliant.
I still think your GHZ would have automatically jumped up to the 2gig mark "ON DEMAND" it's just hard to monitor that action, so to speak.
Martin

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[cdogg]

Slippenos,
Martin is right, but here's another way of looking at it.

Intel calls it Speedstep, which is the ability for the processor to clock itself to lower speeds when activity is low. It's been around for quite some time (since the Pentium III). In addition to saving battery life, it reduces heat which helps to extend the CPU's life as well as other components.

There is a way to disable speedstep. You have to turn it off in the BIOS and select the "always on" power profile in Windows XP. The following sites will also help:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pentium_m

http://www.bay-wolf.com/speedstep.htm#7

~cdogg
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[biglebowski]

I've just got a lenovo R60 and the default scheme has the cpu running at adaptive and low (ac & battery), I had to change the power scheme so that the cpu was at highest before it would reach it's max speed.

(The fact it keeps blue screening distracted me from the poor performance)

When I was born I was so suprised I didn't talk for 18 months

 

[Slippenos]

Thanks all for the great posts!- they were very helpful. Its my first laptop and I am still learning new things about it all the time.

I printed this thread and I am keeping it my bag at all times . Thanks again.

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[paparazi]

Yes sorry!

Press Fn and F3 and sellect "maximum performance" or

Control panel/power options/launch power manager sellect maximum performance.

This does however shorten battery life and the lappy gets a little warmer on your knee lol but is of course no detrement (it is designed to work reliably like this)
Although some would say long term it might shorten the laptops overall life span.
Martin

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