INTEL CORP  is set to launch new hardware for laptop computers that the world's biggest chipmaker hopes will keep it at the top of the fastest-growing segment of the personal computer market. Intel's new product is not a processor but is instead a platform -- a whole package of components including the main processor as well as all the secondary chips that add features such as the ability to connect to a wireless network.

Platforms rarely grab attention outside of technical circles, but Intel is generating wider interest this time because its new products are the first to use flash memory chips, which should translate into faster performance and longer battery life. "Santa Rosa" is the code-name for the latest big overhaul of Centrino, Intel's hugely successful laptop platform brand that helped popularize the Wi-Fi wireless technology now standard in the industry. The new hardware will boost performance and battery life by storing some data on flash memory like that found in digital media players and digital cameras. Flash chips can be accessed more quickly than a hard drive and also use less power. Intel says it has also improved the integrated graphics of Centrino laptops.