Core 2 Duo P9600 @ 2.53GHz ?

[ninaholic37]

On Windows and Linux, it tells me that my Dell Latitude E4300 laptop has a P9600 that can go up to 2.53Ghz, but according to Intel it's supposed to go to 2.66GHz:

http://ark.intel.com/products/series/35572/Intel-Core2-Duo-Processor-P9000-Series#@Mobile

I wondered if maybe I had a broken P9600, or a P9500 that was mislabeled as P9600 internally, so I opened up CPU-Z, and under "Specification" it said Core 2 Duo P9600 @ 2.53GHz also, but the top line for "Name" it said that I had a T9400. So it's apparently a T9400 that is mislabeled as a P9600, and CPU-Z knows about this, so it fixes Intel's error and calls it a T9400 in the "Name" category? And I actually have a T9400?

Does this all make sense to anyone? :awe:

 

[jimbob200521]

What does your BIOS tell you? That's generally more reliable than what an OS or piece of software tells you.

For example, my i7 920 is reported by Windows as 2.66ghz but everything else (including my BIOS) has it clocked in at 2.8ghz. It happens.

 

[ninaholic37]

Thanks. I just checked, and my BIOS also says it's a Core 2 Duo P9600 @2.53GHz.

Does this mean my BIOS is giving the OS the wrong information? Or is the CPU giving the BIOS the wrong information? Or both? The idea that it's actually a T9400 makes the most sense I think.

 

[ninaholic37]

I found another screeshot that shows similar:

And according to here, it might actually be an SP9600:
http://www.notebookreview.com/notebookreview/dell-latitude-e4300-review/

Which has a TDP of 25W instead of 35W (T9400):
http://ark.intel.com/products/37260/Intel-Core2-Duo-Processor-SP9600-6M-Cache-2_53-GHz-1066-MHz-FSB

And the SP also shows up as P in anything that uses the "Specification" apparently:

So there is SP9600, P9500, and T9400, that all have the same max frequency... and might be mislabeled as P9600.

 

[ninaholic37]

By doing some trial-and-error, I'm pretty convinced now that it's actually a Core 2 Duo SP9600. Basically, all CPU-Z screenshots I've found for SP9600 show up as T9400 in the "name" field and as P9600 for everything else (never SP9600 anywhere), and all screenshots I've seen for T9400 and P9500 actually show up correctly. It's the SP9600 that is bugged!

 

[Rngwn]

The P9600 is socketed while the SP9600 is soldered to the board. You could open your laptop to check that if you want to prove it.