Jul 04, 2010 Processor: Intel (R) Atom (TM) CPU N270 @ 1.60GHz version x86 Family 6 model 28 stepping 2. Speed 1595 MHz. Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP. The Intel Atom was originally launched in 2008 and was specifically designed for what was known as the netbook form factor. Netbooks were all the rage back in the 2008 to 2011 years.
The words overclocking and netbook appear in a sentence together about as often as Steve Ballmer is spotted at a Linux convention. Netbooks are all about portability over performance. Overclocking is all about taking already blazing-fast gear and pushing it to its upper limits - warranties, energy use and safety be damned.
Actually, 'people have been overclocking netbooks pretty much since Day One,' according to Brad Linder, who writes the. It started with the, which Asustek Computer 'intentionally underclocked. To improve battery life,' said Linder. Frustrated hackers developed tools such as and to 'right-clock' the Eee's CPU, he says.
Quick to take a hint, Asus soon began shipping its own overclocking app, the Super Hybrid Engine, with every Eee. That let users while staying within warranty.
Intel R Atom Tm Cpu N270 Drivers For Mac
And the newly released Asus 1101HA can be. Related: Netbook manufacturer MSI also enables its users to and make them as much as 24% faster.
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Then there are extreme modders like in Adelaide. Using a dry-ice-filled pot to chill the exposed motherboard of an netbook, they were able to push its Intel Atom N270 processor to 2.4 GHz, a 50% boost over its rated 1.6 GHz.
Of course, most of us aren't interested in performing science experiments for the sake of bragging rights. We just want to get apps to load faster, or high-def videos to play stutter-free.
But besides Asus and MSI, few other netbook makers officially endorse overclocking, much less bundle tools to enable it. Never fear: Below we detail five (fairly) easy ways for you to overclock your netbook, none of which requires access to exotic cooling materials, and only one of which requires competence with a soldering iron. (There's also a for Acer Aspire One owners - no overclocking, but plenty of hardware tweaking.) Here's the fine print: Most of the solutions require your netbook to be running Windows rather than Linux. And the finer print: Your netbook's battery life will definitely drop, while noise from the netbook's fan will rise.
Your netbook could crash or freeze if you raise the speed - and temp - too high, too fast. And if you accidentally fry your motherboard using these third-party apps, don't expect your vendor to honor the warranty. Now, on with the overclocking!
Fiddle with your front-side bus with SetFSB Method: A free, open-source tool, Abo's lets you tune the speed of your CPU, memory and key controllers. Models: Virtually any netbooks running the Intel Atom CPU, including Asus Eees, and even Hewlett-Packard's Minis (more on that later). Not only can SetFSB work with netbooks, but it works for many laptops, net-tops and desktop PCs as well. The has the complete list of compatible chip sets and motherboards.
Operating systems: Officially, Windows Vista, 2003, XP, 2000, NT4, Me and 98. Difficulty level: Potentially challenging, due to the need to for your CPU and employ separate temperature-monitoring software such as. ODOC offers a, while NotebookReview.com offers. The scuttlebutt: SetFSB is widely considered the best multi-PC overclocking tool - when your hardware cooperates.