The warm market response the NVIDIA MCP79 chipset received - in its numerous forms that is - meant that the company is already developing a product line. The newest one is in the works. Named the MCP89E, the chipset, specifications-wise, is a toned-down version of the MCP79. Perhaps that is what "E" in the model name reflects. The chipset is built to support Intel processors that usually feature as part of the Centrino 2 platform. It has an identical pin-layout to the MCP79, so existing motherboards can accommodate it seamlessly with only a BIOS to change.

The specifications sheet, as sourced by VR-Zone, shows the level to which the MCP89E slims down from that of the MCP79. What exactly makes it a generation ahead (as the "89" in the codename suggests), is the fact that this is one of the first platform chipsets to support the generation-3 SATA interface (SATA III, 600 MB/s). It does away with support for the DDR2 memory standard, and has a toned-down PCI-Express root complex with only 8 PCI-E 2.0 lanes to spare. The IGP features only one DAC in comparison to the MCP79, though its output configuration differs: it supports up to two DisplayPort or HDMI connections. NVIDIA may announce this chipset soon, which will further reduce platform costs and thermal footprints for notebooks.