Intel (INTC) says it has plans for a new notebook platform specifically designed for Chinese university students.

The new notebook platform, codenamed "Tanggula," will be stylish and light-weight, and will come in a range of affordable performance and entry-level designs for students and parents.

Intended for demanding university student uses and lifestyles, the new platform will include such features as enhanced security, wireless capability, and high quality sound and audio for multi-media enabled interactive learning and entertainment. The system will have specific features for students, which will be disclosed closer to the platform's introduction. Initial OEM systems based on the Tanggula platform are expected to be available in the second half of this year.

The Tanggula notebook platform from Intel will also feature Common Building Block Program-compliant notebook sub-system ingredients. The Common Building Block program is an initiative to define common notebook ingredients based on pre-existing industry specifications in order to improve ingredient consistency and notebook quality while reducing notebook assembly costs and time-to-market for manufacturers.

Intel also announced that Neusoft Institute of Information's entire student body of more than 8,000 has been equipped with Intel Centrino mobile technology-based notebooks and wireless LAN successfully tested and deployed through the Intel Mobile Initiative for Learning in Education.

Launched in 2004, the Intel Mobile Initiative for Learning in Education aims to accelerate the adoption of mobile computing and wireless technologies in more than 300 universities throughout the Asia Pacific region. More than 100 universities are participating in the program in China.