Intel Core Duo T2700 socket: Socket M

What the Core Duo T2700 is

The Intel Core Duo T2700 is a 2.33 GHz mobile dual core from June 2006. It runs two Yonah cores at a fixed 2.33 GHz through a 14x multiplier on a 667 MT/s bus, so 2 cores give 2 threads with no turbo step. Cache is 2 MB of shared L2 on a 65 nm process. Power is rated at 31 W.

The T2700 arrived five months after the January launch set as the fastest Yonah dual core. It gave premium Napa notebooks a clock lift while bus speed and envelope stayed the same. Flagship configurations of mid 2006 paired it with discrete mobile graphics beside chipset graphics for buyers who wanted the peak of the 32-bit Core Duo line.

Yonah is a 32-bit line, with 64-bit support arriving only on the Merom parts that later shared this socket. The two cores share the single 2 MB cache, so cache heavy pairs of threads contend more than on later split cache designs. The locked multiplier fixes the 14x ratio on every board whose BIOS lists the exact sSpec.

Socket and motherboard compatibility

The socketed T2700 fits the Socket M lever socket (Socket M) on Napa boards with the 945PM or 945GM chipset. The 478-contact Micro-FCPGA package seats with zero insertion force and locks under the screw lever, so replacement needs only board support and fresh thermal interface. The board BIOS must list the exact sSpec, since Napa revisions set which steppings boot.

The T2700 shipped both as a socketed Micro-FCPGA part for Socket M and as a soldered Micro-FCBGA part. Only the Micro-FCPGA package fits the lever socket, while the soldered variant belongs to Socket 479 boards and cannot be socketed later. The Socket vs chipset: what decides whether a CPU works guide covers pairing rules for socketed mobile parts.

Memory, PCIe and cooling

Memory is DDR2 through the board chipset in two channels. Flagship Napa boards commonly take DDR2-667 SO-DIMMs beside a 667 MT/s Yonah, and the board fixes the slot count plus the maximum capacity. The notebook vendor list sets the tested module size for the exact model.

The front side bus runs at 667 MT/s between the CPU and the mobile chipset. No PCIe lanes come from the T2700 itself, while board graphics and expansion slots hang off the chipset at speeds the board maker sets. Display output comes from the board graphics where fitted, since the CPU carries no graphics block.

Cooling is the notebook vendor heat pipe assembly for the exact chassis, sized for the 31 W envelope with a side vent. Retail desktop towers do not mount to mobile sockets, so the fan and pad set must come from the notebook maker. Paste or pad replacement follows the service manual for the exact model.

Upgrade paths

On Socket M there is no faster Yonah dual core past the T2700, since it tops the range at 2.33 GHz. The way forward on the same Socket M is a Merom Core 2 Duo such as the T7400 at 2.17 GHz or the T7600 at 2.33 GHz, which adds 64-bit support with 4 MB of L2 cache. Napa boards need a Merom aware BIOS revision for those parts, and the BIOS must list the new sSpec.

Past Merom the path leaves the socket for a Socket P Santa Rosa board with an 800 MT/s bus and Penryn range parts. That move means a new board with new memory and cooling, since Santa Rosa parts do not seat in Socket M. The Socket vs chipset: what decides whether a CPU works guide covers pairing rules for the move.