Amd vs Intel

AMD Launches the ATI Radeon HD 4770

2009-05-07T09:20:00.000-07:00

AMD Launches the ATI Radeon™ HD 4770, World’s First Desktop Graphics Card Utilizing Industry-Leading 40nm Process Technology

(NYSE:AMD) today launched the ATI Radeon™ HD 4770 graphics processor, a groundbreaking product that harnesses the state-of-the-art 40 nanometer manufacturing process for the desktop PC market, delivering best-in-class performance and energy efficiency at anticipated launch prices as low as $991. The ATI Radeon HD 4770 graphics card is the newest addition to the award-winning ATI RadeonTM HD 4000 series.· The new card features third-generation hardware support for the latest DirectX® 10.1 games like Battleforge, HAWX, S.T.A.L.K.E.R Clear Sky and Stormrise, delivering higher game performance and improved visual quality when compared to DirectX® 10.

· The ATI Radeon HD 4770 continues the AMD tradition of bringing industry-leading technology to market that drives a superior user experience. The ATI Radeon HD 4770 makes use of the latest GDDR5 memory technology, providing incredibly high data rates for fast game performance.
· Gamers looking to get the most value out of their graphics hardware investment can scale their performance using ATI CrossFireX™ technology, allowing a second ATI Radeon HD 4770 card to be added for a near-linear increase in performance.2
· The ATI Radeon HD 4770 graphics card allows users to enjoy HD digital content3 with incredible visual fidelity. The new card helps enhance the definition and clarity of lower resolution media, and through the second generation AMD Unified Video Decoder (UVD 2.0) technology, users can be assured of smooth video playback, crisp images, and vibrant colors on all HD content including Blu-ray discs.4 With support for HDMI, picture-in-picture (PiP) and the latest HD audio technologies like 7.1 surround sound, the new graphics card enables an impressive cinema-quality home entertainment experience.
· Celebrating the company’s 40th Anniversary, AMD continues its heritage of focusing on the design and development of new products and platforms that deliver compelling user experiences at an exceptional value. By combining new AMD Athlon™ X2 7850 processors, AMD 7-Series chipsets and ATI Radeon™ HD 4770 series graphics cards, AMD enables a PC platform that can bring HD video to life while delivering massive performance headroom and video processing acceleration.

“Consumer pressure in this economic downturn is shifting demand to lower prices and the price band around $100 has the highest demand and highest volume,” said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, Graphics Products Group, AMD.5 “AMD has responded with the launch of the ATI Radeon HD 4770, targeting this market with cutting-edge technologies like 40 nm processors, support for DirectX 10.1 gaming and GDDR5 memory. This strategy stands in stark contrast to the old “trickle down” technology approach some still use to address this important segment.”

“As a leading source of cutting-edge game development tools, Emergent has a passion for delivering realistic, visually stunning game play as well as improved performance,” said Doug Kubel, vice president, Product Development, Emergent. “By supporting DirectX 10.1 in the Gamebryo LightSpeed development system, we are able to deliver improvements in both image quality and frame rates. DirectX 10.1 graphics hardware like the ATI Radeon HD 4770 makes it possible to fully unlock the experience delivered by the combined power of DirectX10.1 and Gamebryo LightSpeed.”

MSI 1GHz HD 4890

2009-05-07T09:17:00.000-07:00

MSI is working on a special Radeon HD 4890 which should be called MSI R4890 Cyclone, according to a recent post at Fudzilla.

The card features MSI SuperPipe cooler with four 8mm heatpipes, Hi-C CAPS which generates clean and stable power for the GPU, and 5+2 phase power supply. It might be another card with a GPU clock set at 1GHz, but it’s uncertain yet as the card is still under development.

MSI R4890 Cyclone is expected to show its face at ComputeX 2009 next month.

MSI 1GHz HD 4890

Intel New Chip Logos and Star Rating System

2009-04-08T03:43:00.000-07:00

Intel has rolled out with new chip logos for its Core i7, Core 2, Centrino, Celeron and Pentium processors, and unveiled its Star Rating System with one star denoting the lowest performance and five stars the highest.

The 5-star level consists of Core i7 Series, QX9000 Series and several other high-end mobile CPUs. And Celeron falls to the lowest segment, including Celeron E1000, 400, T1000, 900, 700 and 500 Series.

Intel New Chip Logos and Star Rating System

Intel D-0 Stepping Core i7-920

2009-04-08T03:39:00.000-07:00

In February Intel indicated that it’s initiating a C-0 to D-0 stepping conversion for the Intel Core i7-920 processor.

The overclocking performance of D-0 Core i7-920 is superior to that of C0/C1 stepping. New stepping Core i7-920 features a few changes including S-Spec from SLBCH to SLBEJ, and the CPU ID from 0×000106A4 to 0×000106A5, so a BIOS update is required. Besides, the Ink Swatch number has been also removed.

D0 Core i7-920 has hit retail at AKIBA at price tag of Yen 30780 which is about $306.

Source: [AKIBA]

Intel launches 2GHz Atom Z550

2009-04-08T03:35:00.000-07:00

Intel will announce a couple of new Z-series chips for MIDs (Mobile Internet Devices). Already rumored, the 45nm Atom Z550 and Z515 are clocked at 2 and 1.2 GHz respectively, and feature a 533 MHz FSB and 512kB of cache. The Z515 also have the Burst Performance Technology which enables it to automatically adjusts its working frequency depending on computing needs.

Intel has marked the Atom's first anniversary with the launch of two new parts, the Z550 and Z515.

The Z515 runs at up to 1.2GHz and supports Burst Performance Technology, which allows it to adjust the frequency automatically depending on performance demands. It supports US15W and UL11L chipsets and it will primarily be used in MIDs.

The Z550 runs at 2.0GHz, but still stays withing the 3W power envelope. We are not sure if the Z550 will find its place in new products any time soon. When it comes to Atoms, there is usually a hefty price premium to pay for a slightly higher clock, and for example, a 1.8GHz model costs twice as much as the 1.6GHz we see all over the place.

Both chips have a 2.4W TDP, they idle at 0.22W, have 512KB of L2 cache and run on a 533MHz FSB.

AMD Phenom II X4 955 CPU Coming on April 20th

2009-03-20T07:22:00.000-07:00

AMD was planning to launch 3.1GHz Phenom II X4 950 in Q2 according to our previous source, but Phenom II X4 955 is said to replace it as the fastest AMD CPU.

Phenom II X4 955 has employed 45nm processing and Socket AM3. Clocked at 3.2GHz (16*200MHz), it’s coming with 2MB (4*512KB) L2 Cache and 6MB L3 Cache. With 125W TDP, Phenom II X4 955 is said to be launched on April 20th.

Intel prepping 2.0 GHz Atom Z550 processor

2009-03-20T07:20:00.000-07:00

With the Atom dominance expected to continue, even with the competition from ARM, VIA and others, Intel is reported to be planning the introduction of a 2.0 GHz version of its low-power 45nm CPU. Named Z550, the MID-targeting processor would start selling next month and have 512kB of L2 cache, a FSB of 533 MHz and a TDP of 2.4W, just like its brothers, the 1.86 GHz Z540, and the rather popular 1.6 GHz Z530 which is used in a few netbook models on sale today.

The price of the Atom Z550 is yet unknown but Intel could simply ask $135 and thus lower the price of the Z540, and, consequently, the Z530. Were all for cheaper and more powerful.

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32nm CPUs next year from AMD

2009-03-08T05:05:00.000-07:00

Although Advanced Micro Devices was previously expected to get ready to produce central processing units under the 32-nanometer process technology only in 2011, it seems that the chip maker plans to speed things up a little. Dirk Meyer, chief executive of AMD, stated recently that the company was set to “ramp up” production in the middle of next year, and that it expected volume production to start in the fourth quarter of the year.

Currently, the CPUs shipped by both AMD and Intel are fabricated using the 45nm process. The Sunnyvale company has managed to come to the market with processors manufactured under the 45nm process only in the fourth quarter of last year, but it seems that it expects to be able to move to the next-generation 32nm fabrication by mid 2010.

Unlike the previous generation of chips made by AMD, the 32nm CPUs will only be designed by the company, The Foundry Company being the one that will take on the manufacturing process. It seemsthat the spinoff of its facilities into a new entity helped the chip maker keep on track with rolling out new-generation processors only about a year behind archrival Intel.

According to Meyer, AMD and Advanced Technology Investment Co., formed by the Abu Dhabi government, will close today the deal regarding the spinoff of the chip maker's manufacturing operations into a joint company. This move is expected to help AMD put an end to an entire line of quarterly loses.

Meyer says that the chip maker expects the Foundry Co to provide it with the necessary resources, mainly due to the fact that AMD will own 34 percent of the newly formed joint venture. At the same time, he seems to believe that the spinoff was a great move for AMD. “We've been actually impressed to see the quality and depth of the relationship a fabless company can have with its partners,” Meyer said.

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Intel intros specialized Atom for cars and other devices, outsources some Atom manufacturing

2009-03-08T05:02:00.000-07:00

Intel intros specialized Atom for cars and other devices, outsources some Atom manufacturing

Relying on the same 45nm manufacturing process, the new Atom Z5xx series processors expectedly aren't too radically different from the average Atom, with them clocking in between 1.1GHz and 1.6GHz, and boasting a TDP rating of 2.0 or 2.2 watts, although they do have some "embedded lifecycle support" thrown in for good measure. In related news, Intel has also announced that it'll be outsourcing "some" Atom manufacturing to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (or TSMC), which apparently marks the first time that Intel has licensed its CPU core to a foundry.

Dual-CPU Nehalem systems pump up the bandwidth

2009-03-04T07:02:00.001-08:00

Intel will officially introduce the dual processor Nehalem-EP, aka Gainestown.

Essentially, it keeps the same format and LGA1366 socket as the uni-processor Core i7, just dual CPU support and two QPI links per chip this time - one to talk to the Tylersburg chipset, another for high speed whispering to its twin Nehalem brother.

Even the workstation flavour of the Tylersburg is identical to the desktop one (X58) plus of course an extra QPI link to talk to that second CPU - or the second Tylersburg in dual North Bridge configuration for, say, quad PCIe x16 monster boards. Just count the PCIe lanes on this diagram.

Intel changes all logos

2009-03-01T10:08:00.000-08:00

Intel just got into business of changing logos, and we just found out how the rest of the line up looks like.

The new logo is much wider than the previous one and on the top right corner you can see something that looks like chip. Core i7 and Core 2 Extreme logos are black, while Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Duo, Core 2 vPro are blue and very similar.

Many Centrino logos are all in white, and the top one is Centrino 2 inside, runner up is Centrino 2 vPro followed by Centrino inside and Centrino vPro inside.

Itanium, Xeon, and Core 2 Viiv sort of didnt change their format, while Xeon will come in new blue colour, probably for Nehalem based Xeons. New logos will be effective as of April 1st, the first day of Q2 2009.

Demand for three-core Phenoms II on the rise

2009-03-01T09:55:00.001-08:00

Following fourth core unlock reports

Demand for AMD three-core Phenom II chips is on the rise, following reports that the fourth core on many units can be activated after fiddling with some bios settings.

Of course, the hack doesn't work on all CPUs, but only certain batches, so consumers can't really expect a 100 percent success rate, but nevertheless, the prospect of a free fourth core seems quite appealing to some.

Of course, AMD refuses to officially comment the three-core to quad-core five-finger discount hack.

Several readers have already contacted us to confirm they managed to succesfully enable the fourth core, and in case you have a three-core Phenom II, and you've tried enabling the disabled core, we would like to hear from you.

More here.

Nehalem based Xeons on last day of March

2009-03-01T09:52:00.000-08:00

Official launch on March 30th

Intel will officially launch the Nehalem generation of Xeons on the very last day of March. While it will show itself in Intel’s pricelist on March 28th, the official launch and availability is planned for the last day in Q1.

The new Xeon will also get a new logo, which is slightly different then the existing one, with a different colour scheme. We are not sure that many customers will be ready to swap their Penryn based servers for Nehalem based ones, mainly due to cost related issues, but we are quite sure that Nehalem based Xeons should end up much faster than Penryn 45nm based Xeons.

AMD Phenom II X4 hits 4.4GHz

2009-02-24T06:48:00.000-08:00

AMDs Phenom II processors are truly mean overclockers under extreme cold, but with more conventional cooling the processors are yet to really impress. They are still much better than the last series of Phenoms, but compared to Intels Core architecture they are still several MHz short. AMD overclockers have started looking for The Golden One among Phenom II processors and we now hear about a Phenom II X4 processor that does 4.4GHz with air cooling and "only" 1.55V.

The overclock was with all four cores, but and the air was a bit colder than normal (processor temperature was about 25°C) and the memories downclocked to reach 4.4GHz. The system was just stable enough for a CPU-Z screendump but it still shows that the Phenom II architecture can reach respectable frequencies with regular air cooling.

soruce

AMD Sempron X2 2300 in Store in Japan

2009-02-22T07:04:00.000-08:00

AMD’s dual-core Sempron X2 2300 has been available in Japan at JPY2480 (about $27), according to the guys at AKIBA. This is the second model of Sempron dual-core CPU after Sempron X2 2100 announced in last March.

With 512KB L2 cache, 65nm Socket AM2 and TDP of 65W, Sempron X2 2300 is almost the same as Sempr

on X2 2100. But it features frequency of 2.2GHz, up from 1.8GHz on Sempron X2 2100.

AMD Sempron X2 2300 in Store in Japan

AMD six-core 'Istanbul' Opteron Tests

2009-02-20T09:46:00.000-08:00

AMD has given a glimpse at what its upcoming six-core Opteron processors (amd Istanbul). As reported by The Tech Report, the server CPUs were shown off in three systems - two quad-socket and one dual-socket, running everything from Windows Server 2008 to Server 2008 plus three virtual machines with Windows Server 2003, Red Hat Linux and SLES 11 x64 installed.

The dual socket server with 12 cores

Manufactured using the 45nm process technology, the six-core CPUs are compatible with current Socket F motherboards making the upgrade simple and easy, have dual-channel DDR2 memory controllers, HyperTransport 3.0 and 6MB of L3 cache. The Istanbul Opterons are expected to make their debut in the second half of this year and will be followed in 2010 by the DDR3-supporting Sao Paolo models.

Four sockets = 24 cores ready for battlesource The Tech Report.

Propus Athlon X4 delayed to Q3

2009-02-15T06:49:00.000-08:00

AMD plans to bring more Deneb and Heka based Quad and Three core CPUs in Q2, but the Propus non energy efficient will be pushed to early Q3. This looks like a business decision as the company already plans a 45W Propus in early Q2.

The specifications seem to be locked and Athlon X4 615 will work at 2.7GHz, come with 2MB L2 cache and will sit under the 95W umbrella.

The runner up is Athlon X4 605 that runs at 2.5GHz. Funny enough, the Athlon X4 605e works at 2.3GHz but has only a 45W TDP while the non e version has a massive 95W TDP.

At least you can expect these CPUs in back to school period.

Intel ready with its first 8-Core xeon processors

2009-02-07T07:37:00.000-08:00

Santa Clara, California-based Intel is expected to detail one of its highest-anticipated server processors at the upcoming International Solid-State Circuits Conference in San Francisco between February 8 and 12, 2009. The chip maker is expected to provide an early look at its first eight-core chip, which will be part of the company's Xeon family of processors. These chips are to provide a new level of performance for server systems based on a dual-socket motherboard.

Unfortunately, at this time, there aren't any details regarding the Xeon processors to be discussed at the February 9 presentation. According to the ISSCC programme, executives of the global leading chip maker will be discussing an 8-core, 16-thread Xeon processor, which will be manufactured using a 45nm process technology. According to additional info, said processor will also be featuring 2.38 transistors and support operation of up to 6.4GT/s.

As expected, Intel is yet to officially comment on the respective Xeon processor, which it will likely do during the ISSCC event. “We are presenting 16 papers at ISSCC, but don't haveanything further to share at this point,” said Nick Jacobs, a company spokesman in Singapore.
According to the available details, Intel's presentation might just be related to the company's highly-anticipated Xeon processor that will be based on the Nehalem EP architecture. This server CPU is known to have been designed specifically for dual-socket servers and workstations. According to previous details, this processor line is due to be released sometime in early 2009.

The upcoming chips will sport some of the features currently available for Intel's other Nehalem-based chips, including the use of Intel's Quick Path Interconnect (QPI), which basically replaces the front side bus, featured on Intel's previous generation of Xeon processors. This feature boosts the computer's overall performance.

First preview of Phenom X3 720 BE

2009-02-07T07:29:00.000-08:00

Tested and overclocked to 3.7GHz

The guys at Donanimhaber.com managed to get their hands on AMD's Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition CPU and test it on both AM2+ DDR2 and AM3 DDR3 motherboard. They even tried to overclock it and the score are very impressive, as they managed to get it all the way from 2.8GHz to 3.7GHz.

The most interesting part is the DDR2 versus DDR3 tests, as the DDR3 memory doesn't bring any significant performance gains, especially if you compare DDR2 and DDR3 prices. The Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition should be launched on February 9th and as a part of the Black Edition series it has unlocked multipliers. Other specifications include a base clock of 2.8GHz, 1.5MB of L2 and 6MB of L3 cache and a TDP of 95 Watt's. According to what we see from these results, AMD might give Intel a run for its money, at least with this Phenom II X3 720 BE which can be found listed at around €140 in Europe.

You can find more here

Intels 65W Core 2 Quad cpu up for pre-order

2009-02-07T07:26:00.000-08:00

Intels lower-power Core 2 Quad processors are now propping up at various retailers. Two of the three new 65W parts - the Core 2 Quad Q8200s and Core 2 Quad Q9550s - are available to pre-order from Scan.co.uk, but at a notable premium. Here is how pricing compares for 65W equivalents of existing 95W

Processor	Core 2 Quad Q9550s	Core 2 Quad Q9550	Core 2 Quad Q8200s	Core 2 Quad Q8200
CPU speed	2.83GHz	2.83GHz	2.33GHz	2.33GHz
FSB	1,333MHz	1,333MHz	1,333MHz	1,333MHz
L2 cache	12MB	12MB	4MB	4MB
Manufacturing process	45nm	45nm	45nm	45nm
TDP	65W	95W	65W	95W
Price	£339.04	£231.12	£220.79	£146.61

Were sure there are users to whom each degree in temperature makes all the difference, but a price hike of £108 and £74, respectively, currently make both the Q9550s and Q8200s seem far too pricey.

They might be out of reach for the everyday consumer, but 65W quad-core chips are a welcome addition to Intels line-up and wed expect them to appear in numerous systems in the coming weeks - and perhaps in a refreshed iMac, too.

Intel LGA 1155, 1156, 1576 sockets

2009-02-07T07:20:00.000-08:00

Core i7's LGA 1366 socket is old so Intel is looking to introduce a few new sockets, and processors. Not like in the LGA 775 Intel is preparing to introduce two mainstream Nehalem sockets, both of which are pictured below - Socket H1 (LGA 1156) and H2 (LGA 1155). These will house the Core i5 CPU models which, compared to the Core i7s, lack QPI and the triple-channel memory controller but integrate a dual channel DDR3 memory and PCI-Express controllers.

Socket H1 (left) and Socket H2 (right)

Before Socket H1 and H2 come into play, another new socket (seen below) will make its debut. Socket Socket LS aka LGA 1567 is aimed at the server market and will be paired up with Nehalem-based Xeon processors.

Intel LGA 1155, 1156, 1576 sockets

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Phenom II X4 B93 top business CPU

2009-02-03T05:15:00.000-08:00

2.8GHz for businessmen

AMD is still on track to launch its new Phenom II generation for business people and these CPUs should find their place to the corporate hearts. Business class Phenoms based on the Deneb 45nm quad-core will launch in early Q3 2009.

The best is called Phenom II X4 B93 and this CPU works at 2.8GHz and is in fact nothing more than a regular Deneb based Phenom renamed to sound more like a business thing. This CPU has 8MB of total cache 4x512L2 and 6MB L3 and it fits the 95W TDP envelope.

The runner up Phenom X4 B91 has the same specs but it will end up cheaper and works at 2.6GHz. These CPUs will dethrone the Phenom X4 9850B and the rest of the Agena 65nm based generation, but as always this won’t happen overnight.

Intel's 3.33GHz Core i7 975 Extreme Edition

2009-02-03T05:12:00.000-08:00

Intel's 3.33GHz Core i7 975 Extreme Edition

Intel appears to be set to give it another nudge forward with the launch of the Core i7 975 Extreme Edition processor.

Details are in short supply, but overclockers Mikeguava and Fugger appear to have their hands on Intel's range-topping part and have done what they do best - overclock the hell out of it. Using GIGABYTE's EX58 Extreme mainboard, Corsair's peltier-cooled memory and a pair of Radeon HD 4870 X2 graphics cards, they managed to score a staggering 47,026 3DMarks.

What's interesting is that the CPU features D0 stepping, and such a change usually denotes a refined silicon package that could result in lower power consumption and should provide greater overclocking headroom.

There's no news on release details at this early stage, but this is a chip that's likely to be priced close to the mind-boggling £1,000 mark. We'd hate to be one of those who've recently splashed out over £800 on the soon-to-be-dethroned Core i7 965 Extreme Edition.

Intel's Core i7 975 EE benchmarked

2009-02-03T05:06:00.000-08:00

Intel will release Extreme Edition Core i7 processor within the near future, as well known overclocker Fugger has posted some early benchmarks and overcklocking results for the Core i7 Extreme Edition 975 which comes clocked at a default speed of 3.33GHz.

Although this is hardly a huge step up from the current 965XE part which is clocked at 3.2GHz, the new 975XE seems to overclock much better. Using a Gigabyte EX58-Extreme motherboard, Fugger managed to push the new CPU to 5.26GHz without any problems and with the help of a pair of Radeon HD 4870 X2 graphics cards, him and his partner Mikeguava managed to break 47,000 in 3DMark 05 which is a new world record. Its likely that Fugger will achieve even higher scores with this CPU given time and it looks like all the overclockers out there will have a new toy to play with in due time. As there are other chips in circulation already, wed expect more benchmark results to pop up over the next few weeks.

Intel i7 975 ES D0 stepping
Gigabyte EX58-EXTREME
Gigabyte 4870X2 Quadfire (pure stock)
Corsair 1866C8 with Pelt cooling
K|ngp|n F1 EE Pot
750W Silencer PSU

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3.5GHz Core 2 Duo E8700 on sale

2009-01-29T05:10:00.000-08:00

Intel will soon launch its fastest dual-core to date, the Core 2 Duo E8700 clocked at 3.5GHz. €259 in Belgium

Many of these 45nm parts will end up overclocked, and we're sure gamers will appreciate them. The price however, is another issue. At €259 the E8700 is no bargain, and you can get a pretty good quad core for less. It's still the highest clocked Intel desktop CPU out there, and this fact alone means it's worth mentioning. Like the E8600, the 3.5GHz E8700 has a 1333MHz FSB, 6MB L2-cache and has a rather good 65W TDP.

You can find the listing here.

Phenom II X4 950 at 3.1GHz to rise in Q2

2009-01-27T07:30:00.000-08:00

AMD officially announced its 45nm processor Phenom II Series on January 8th, and there were only two models of CPU at that time, that is Phenom II X4 920 of 2.8 GHz and Phenom II X4 940 of 3.0GHz.
Expected to be released in Q2 this year, Phenom II X4 950 only offers 100MHz higher clock (improved from 3.0GHz to 3.1GHz). The other specs of Phenom II X4 950 are the same as that of Phenom II X4 920/940: 8MB total cache, 125W TDP and Socket AM2+. For now, the M.S.R.P of Phenom II X4 940 is $275. Considering changes of market condition, Phenom II X4 950 should be priced lower when it actually reaches store.

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Intel Core 2 Duo at 3.5 GHz priced at 260 Euro

2009-01-27T07:24:00.000-08:00

The recently-revealed Core 2 Duo E8700 has actually become available in one belgian store. Clocked at 3.5 GHz, the dual-core LGA775 processor is priced at 259,90 Euro, some 25 Euro higher than the 3.33 GHz E8600. The E8700 is listed as 'out of stock' but that's to be expected as Intel will likely want to start shipping it closer to the debut of AMD's first AM3 quad-, tri- and dual-core processors.

via

CPU cooler from Prolimatech

2009-01-27T07:19:00.000-08:00

The cpu cooler comes from a company called Prolimatech and it’s avaiable in Europe, selling for 59.90EUR.This cooler features dual-tower design and six 6mm heat sinks. Total size is 130×74x158.7mm and weight of 790g, it doesn’t come with a fan but you can install a fan with 57CFM of airflow.

Pics via: [Caseking.de]

AMD's Phenom II at 6.5GHz, smash 3DMark record

2009-01-26T08:50:00.000-08:00

A team of hardcore speed freaks with access to liquid nitrogen and liquid helium created an environment for OC'ing one of AMD's latest Phenom II X4 chips in -232 degrees Celsius weather. Once the silicon was appropriately chilled, they proceeded to push the clock speed to a staggering 6.5GHz, which proved nimble enough to deliver a patently absurd 45,474 3DMark05 score.The adoring public was there to bear witness, and every nail-biting second of it is hosted up in the video just past the break.

AMD's Phenom II at 6.5GHz, smash 3DMark record

via:engadget.com

Intel Core 2 Duo E7300 VS. AMD Athlon X2 7750

2009-01-19T04:02:00.000-08:00

Kuma, 2.7GHz, 200MHz FSB, 13.5x multiplier, each core 64K L1 instruction Cache and 64K L1 data Cache, 2×512KB L2 cache, 2MB L3 cache and it supports SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSE4A and X86-64. In AthlonX2 7750 black edition reviewed we contrasted its performances with Athlon X2 5400＋ black edition and it really improved a lot.

Currently, Core 2 Duo E7300 is about 110$ while Athlon X2 7750 is about 70$.AMD 790GX is about 85$ while NVIDIA MCP7A is about 100$.

Athlon X2 7750 black edition

Core 2 Duo E7300

PCMark Vantage focuses on the whole performances of the system and E7300 is a little better.

Athlon X2 7750 system is much better than E7300 system.

E7300 is about 110$ while Athlon X2 7750 black edition is about 70$, then the AMD system can save about 30$. The price of the 790GX is about 85$ while MCP7A is about 100$, and then AMD system can save other 15$.

The price and performance of Athlon X2 7750 black edition+790GX are both good

via:.hardspell.com read full article here

AMD Phenom II pricing

2009-01-19T03:59:00.000-08:00

It's been about a week since AMD officially launched its new family of CPUs: the Phenom II, so we thought we'd have a look at UK pricing and availability.

Unable to compete with Intel in the upper echelons of CPU performance, AMD is focusing on price/performance as one of the key selling points of its CPUs. As a consequence it's vital that its new Phenom II processors are priced competitively.

In the table below two new AMD CPUs cost at a selection of UK etailers. As their worth will inevitably be assessed in comparison to equivalently priced Intel processors, we've included three of those too.

etailer	Product	Availability	Price (inc. VAT)
SCAN.co.uk	Phenom II X4 940 BE	In stock	£220.73
	Phenom II X4 920	In stock	£189.74
	Core i7 920	In stock	£240.55
	Q9400	Pre-order	£195.47
	Q8300	In stock	£183.99
ebuyer.com	Phenom II X4 940 BE	In stock	£229.99
	Phenom II X4 920	In stock	£197.95
	Core i7 920	In stock	£239.99
	Q9400	In stock	£225.95
	Q8300	Not listed	-
dabs.com	Phenom II X4 940 BE	In stock	£218.76
	Phenom II X4 920	In stock	£186.24
	Core i7 920	In stock	£239.99
	Q9400	Not listed	£202.16
	Q8300	Not listed	£183.99
yoyotech.co.uk	Phenom II X4 940 BE	In stock	£230.23
	Phenom II X4 920	In stock	£196.08
	Core i7 920	In stock	£243.98
	Q9400	In stock	£209.45

source: hexus.net

Intel's CULV to come in Q2

2009-01-19T03:57:00.000-08:00

Vendors expect to ship 10 million units this year

Intel's new platform for thin and light ultraportables should appear as early as Q2 2009, according to Digitimes. The new platform, dubbed CULV for consumer ultra-low voltage, is a tweaked ULV Core series architecture, designed to take on AMD's Neo platform.

According to reports, the top three notebook vendors are working on CULV based products, and expect to sell as many as 10 million CULV based units before the end of the year. As the platform is scheduled for launch in Q2, this is quite an impressive number, but the $699-899 price tag of upcoming CULV notebooks is quite tempting.

Intel apparently plans to divide the notebook market into four segments. Everything above 12.1-inches will be traditional notebooks, it will have a Atom netbook segment, Menlow MID segment and the new, thin and light 11 to 13.3-inch market segment.

Intel's CULV platform should fill the gap between Atom based netbooks and ultraportables, or even classic 12.1-inch machines, mainly due to its competitive pricing. Intel's decision not to allow Atoms in machines over 10 inches also makes sense, as it would hurt its own upcoming platform and further lower the average selling price of its mobile CPUs.

AMD launched its Neo platform on CES, and at least on paper it is in the lead, but we have still to see actual product announcements or any word from AMD on the number of design wins. When Puma was launched some six months ago, AMD boasted 90+ design wins at launch day, and we all know Puma didn't manage to make much of an impact on the market. The only Neo based machine announced so far is HP's Pavilion DV2, which should be available in April.

More here.

Intel's new release: Core 2 Quad Q7500

2009-01-19T03:53:00.000-08:00

Intel is planning to fight back against AMD not only with price cuts but also with a new release, that of the Core 2 Quad Q7500. Made using the 45nm process, the Core 2 Quad Q7500 has a working frequency of 2.6 GHz, a TDP of 65W, a FSB of 800MHz and just 2MB of L2 cache, half the size of Q8000 series models and six times less than the Q9x50s.

The L2 cache size is small, the Q7500 may end up a very attractive part depending on its price tag which should be under $150. There's no info on its release date though so we'll have to wait for Intel to make a move.

AMD 3.1 GHz Phenom II for Q2

2009-01-19T03:49:00.000-08:00

AMD will have a busy year, following the release of two 45nm desktop CPUs, the Phenom II X4 940 BE and X4 920, it will also introduce the first DDR3-supporting Phenoms - six starting February. Following the initial AM3 roll-out, in Q2 AMD is expected to up the ante and put more pressure on Intel's Core 2 Quads with the release of the Phenom II X4 950, an AM3 CPU that will be clocked at 3.1 GHz, 100 MHz more than the X4 940 and 945.

Likely to be priced close around the $300 mark, the Phenom II X4 950 will have a dual-channel DDR3-1333 integrated memory controller, 6MB of L3 cache and a TDP of 125W. The 950 certainly won't get AMD much closer to the performance crown but it should give us an alternative to Intel's Q9650.

AMD delivers Sempron 210U and 200U CPUs

2009-01-15T03:37:00.000-08:00

AMD has now introduced two new processors , the Sempron 210U and 200U. Featuring a lidless Ball Grid Array packaging, the two new low-power 65nm CPUs are set to be used for anything from enterprise-class thin client systems to point of sale kiosks, digital signage and more.

"These new lidless BGA packaged processors can help customers significantly shrink their embedded design into new smaller, flatter form factors without having to sacrifice any computing performance," said Buddy Broeker, director, Embedded Product Marketing, AMD. "Retail touch screens, self-service kiosks and digital signage are a growing part of the consumer experience and thin client computing continues to play a strong role in helping businesses become more efficient. These new processor features will help our customers stay on the cutting edge of embedded system design."

Specifications: the Sempron 210U and 200U have 256kB of L2 cache, integrated DDR2 memory controllers, frequencies of 1.5 GHz and 1.0 GHz respectively and TDPs of 15W and 8W.

Intel watercools Nehalem to 4.61GHz

2009-01-15T03:26:00.000-08:00

François Piednoel, and the rest of its performance analysis group, have showed us Nehalem, Core i7 PC water cooled all the way to 4.61GHz.

They did it on an Intel desktop motherboard powered by Intel's desktop control center, something that lets you overclock from Windows. The voltage was all the way to 1.44V, whereas the chipset needed 1.21V.Host frequency clock, something that we used to call FSB speed of the machine is 144MHz, which multiplied by the 32 multiplier gives you the 4610MHz number.

The CPU temperature was at 61 degree Celsius while the CPU Voltage regulator was at 31 °C and chipset at 41 °C. The clock is much higher than the one you can score on Phenom II, but Intel’s CPU used here is much more expensive.

Nehelem, Core i7 is definitely better water overclocker than Phenom II but Phenom II still overclocks higher at 6GHz+ domains.

Intel announces Core 2 Quad Q6600 EOL

2009-01-13T03:11:00.000-08:00

Intel recently announced that the company will take 2.4GHz Core 2 Quad Q6600 orders until 8th of May, 2009, and will ship the CPU in box and tray version until August 7th 2009 and July 10th, 2010 respectively.Intel explained this move with the consumer demand shifting to higher performance CPUs. The Quad Q6600, which we tested way back, was insanely popular as it was a great bang for buck as it featured a decent price and overclocked nicely.

Due to quite a demand for it, it managed to outlive and certainly outshine its brethren, as it broke through quite a number of EOL announcements. Since this is a Kentsfield based CPU built in the now obsolete 65nm process, we do not expect it to do so again, so we’ll start baking its retirement cake.

Intel to release energy-efficient quads and cut CPU prices

2009-01-13T03:02:00.000-08:00

Intel was planning the release of the Core 2 Quad Q8200s, Q9400s and Q9550s, its first Core 2 Quad CPUs to have a TDP of just 65W for this month. The launch is slated for Sunday, January 18 and it will also see to the introduction of two new low-cost dual-cores, the E7500 and E5400. Moreover, Intel will cut the price of six models, the Q8200 (features a 95W TDP), the E7400, E5300, E5200, E2220 and E1400.

All info regarding the January 18 changes can be seen in this chart. Intel is also rumored to be cutting prices of the rest of its Core 2 Quad line-up later on, this month.

Intel and AMD new quad-core chips

2009-01-13T02:51:00.000-08:00

AMD and Intel ended 2008 with a new quad-core hit. There is Intel Core 2 Quad Mobile Processor Q9000 that is the latest mobile processor from Intel and it has been housed in the Acer’s recently launched 8930G laptop, and AMD’s Phenom II processors that have popped up online for consumers’ pre-orders.

As mentioned earlier, the Intel Core 2 Quad Mobile Processor Q9000 has been housed in the Acer’s recently launched 8930Gnotebook and this processor is running with 12MB of shared L2 cache in this laptop an with 2.53GHz clock speed rate upward and a 1066 MHz front side bus.

Aside from the Q9000 chip, there are many other impressive features in the new Acer notebook that also include DDR3 memory of 4GB, an 18.4inch LCD, a 1/2TB SATA hard disk and a NVIDIA GeForce 9700M GT graphic card.

Aside from the Q9000, Intel is also release four more mobile processors, while AMD will debut its Phenom II processors publicly at CES next month. This new processor from AMD is already available for pre-orders and it runs at up to 3GHz of speed with an 8MB cache.

AMD 45nm Phenom II analysis and review

2009-01-10T05:47:00.001-08:00

Based on the company's 45nm manufacturing process and brought to market a couple of months after the launch of the similar server part, Shanghai, AMD's Phenom II quad-core processors promise higher clock speeds, to better compete against Intel's Core 2 Quad CPUs.

Phenom II 920 and 940, released at clock-speeds of 2.8GHz and 3.0GHz, respectively, will be available to buy in a couple of weeks. We investigate whether the advancements over incumbent Phenom X4 are enough to make them serious contenders in the <£250 market.

Processors	Cores	Architecture	Process	Clock speed	L2 cache (total)	L3 cache	Memory-controller speed	Voltage	TDP	etailer pricing
AMD Phenom II 940 Black Edition	4	K10	45nm	3.0GHz	2MB	6MB	1.8GHz	0.875-1.5V	125W	£215
AMD Phenom II 920	4	K10	45nm	2.8GHz	2MB	6MB	1.8GHz	0.875-1.5V	125W	£175
AMD Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition	4	K10	65nm	2.6GHz	2MB	2MB	2.0GHz	1.05-1.3V	125W	£140
AMD Phenom X4 9850 BE	4	K10	65nm	2.5GHz	2MB	2MB	2.0GHz	1.05-1.3V	125W	£130
AMD Phenom X4 9750	4	K10	65nm	2.4GHz	2MB	2MB	1.8GHz	1.1-1.3V	95W	£120
AMD Phenom X4 9650	4	K10	65nm	2.3GHz	2MB	2MB	1.8GHz	1.1-1.3V	95W	£112
AMD Phenom X4 9350e	4	K10	65nm	2.0GHz	2MB	2MB	1.8GHz	1.0-1.125V	65W	£110
AMD Phenom X3 8750	3	K10	65nm	2.4GHz	1.5MB	2MB	1.8GHz	1.05-1.25V	95W	£99
AMD Phenom X3 8650	3	K10	65nm	2.4GHz	1.5MB	2MB	1.8GHz	1.05-1.25V	95W	£82
AMD Phenom X3 8450	3	K10	65nm	2.1GHz	1.5MB	2MB	1.8GHz	1.2-1.3V	95W	£75
AMD Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition	2	K10	65nm	2.7GHz	1MB	2MB	1.8GHz	1.2-1.25V	95W	£65?
AMD Athlon X2 7550	2	K10	65nm	2.5GHz	1MB	2MB	1.8GHz	1.2-1.25V	95W	£55?
AMD Athlon X2 6400+ BE	2	K8	65nm	3.2GHz	2MB	N/A	1GHz	1.35-1.4V	125W	£72
AMD Athlon X2 6000+	2	K8	65nm	3.1GHz	1MB	N/A	1GHz	1.1-1.4V	89W	£63

AMD finally launches Phenom II and Dragon Platform

2009-01-10T05:32:00.000-08:00

AMD's 45nm, quad-core Phenom II has finally arrived. It's available in two flavors, the 2.8GHz X4 920 and the 3.0GHz X4 940 Black Edition, going for $235 and $275, respectively. AMD's naturally touting the ostensible cost savings of the chips . The Dragon platform includes a Phenom II proc, 4800-series Radeon HD graphics and a 790-series motherboard, all of which should combine for low power consumption -- up to 40 percent compared to Phenom processors. Where the Phenom II definitely wins is the fact that some AMD folks will be able to drop in the chip to existing motherboards, but otherwise it looks like value hounds and performance junkies aren't being served by this new chip.

AMD finally launches Phenom II

Performance

The Phenom II's integrated memory controller and HyperTransport interface give it a technical edge over competing Core 2 Quad chips, which lack those features. Intel moved to an integrated memory controller and began incorporating its own version of HyperTransport--dubbed QuickPath Interconnect--only with its Core i7 platform. The integrated memory controller and HyperTransport interface allow Phenom II processors to achieve a higher memory bandwidth than Core 2 Quad processors can, by eliminating the bottlenecks created by a frontside bus and an external controller. The arrangement, in theory, improves system performance.

Model / Processor Frequency:	AMD Phenom II Processor Model X4 940 / X4 920 / 3.0GHz, 2.8GHz
L1 Cache Sizes:	64K of L1 instruction and 64K of L1 data cache per core (512KB total L1 per processor)
L2 Cache Sizes:	512KB of L2 data cache per core (2MB total L2 per processor)
L3 Cache Size:	6MB (shared)
Memory Controller Type:	Integrated 128-bit wide memory controller, capable of being configured for dual 64-bit channels for simultaneous read/writes
Memory Controller Frequency:	Up to 1.8GHz with Dual Dynamic Power Management
Types of Memory:	Support for unregistered DIMMs up to PC2 8500 (DDR2-1066MHz)
HyperTransport 3.0:	One 16-bit/16-bit link @ up to 3600MHz full duplex
Total Processor Bandwidth:	Up to 31.5 GB/s bandwidth
Packaging:	Socket AM2+ 940-pin organic micro pin grid array (micro-PGA) (backward compatible with Socket AM2)
Fab location:	AMD's Fab 36 wafer fabrication facilities in Dresden, Germany
Process Technology:	45nm (.045-micron) DSL Silicon on Insulator (SOI)
Approximate Transistor count:	approx. ~758 million (65nm)
Approximate Die Size:	258 mm2 (45nm)
Nominal Voltage:	.0875-1.5 Volts
Max Ambient Case Temp:	62 degress Celsius
Max TDP:	125 Watts
ACP:	*to be announced after launch
Future Memory Controller Note:	Future 45nm processors versions are planned to include support for DDR3 memory

Availability and Phenom II Processor Pricing

Consumers can expect to see systems featuring Dragon platform technology from leading system builders and OEMs in the first quarter of 2009. In addition to Dragon platform technology-based offerings from AMD’s OEM partners, PC enthusiasts who enjoy building their own systems can search “Dragon” on popular e-tail sites such as newegg.com and tigerdirect.com to find special promotions on this new desktop PC platform.

In addition to Dragon platform technology, individual AMD Phenom II X4 processors will be available from AMD channel e-tailers at launch:

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition processor – (3.0GHz) – $275 MSRP

AMD Phenom II X4 920 processor – (2.8GHz) – $235 MSRP

Intel Core i7 Overclocking - Core i7 Overclocking

2009-01-07T07:58:00.000-08:00

You will se how high these processors(Nehalam processors- the 920 and the 965EE) can be overclocked using the ASUS P6T motherboard. It is very interesting how Intel works with the QPI bus v/s Multipliers. After a bit of tinkering around, we eventually found the sweet spot on each of these processors. So it was now time to see how hot these babies got on a one hour OCCT stress test.

Intel Core i7 Overclocking - Core i7 Overclocking

No surprises with the temperatures for the 130W CPU’s especially the 965EE hitting 4GHz on a stock air cooling solution.

The voltage configuration set to Auto at first and increased the BCLK from 133 MHz to 150 MHz as a jumpstart. From there steadily increased the BCLK in increments of 5 MHz. Guys at tbreak managed to hit the wall at 180 MHz which was the limit at which we could enter Windows, but the OCCT test threw off a bit and there was no stability.

With the bus speed down in 2 MHz decrements with stress tests at each level and success arrived at 168 MHz. Next up was the Multiplier, which hit 4 GHz on the 965EE while the 920 stayed at 3360 MHz due to its multiplier limit of 20x. Increasing the voltage wasn’t doing us any good as we weren’t able to manage a stable one hour stress test. Although, higher clocks could be possible with a better cooling solution and a lot more time.

Conclusion:

Intel Core i7 has started out as a good overclocker. Getting to the sweet spots wasn't really difficult and all this achieved on the stock air cooling solution provided by Intel and stock core voltages. The overclocked Core i7’s do make excellent performers and those seeking not only thrills from overclocking their CPU’s are in for a ride.
source:tbreak.com

Transcend triple channel DDR3-1333 memory kits

2009-01-07T07:56:00.000-08:00

Transcend Information Inc has released its DDR3-1333 triple channel memory kits for use with Intel Core i7 processors and Intel X58 Express Chipset motherboards. Transcend’s triple channel kits are designed specifically for the new platform, and offer an optimized combination of low voltage (1.5V), speed and enhanced latency (9-9-9-24) to deliver suitable performance and compatibility with next-generation PCs.

Available in two different capacities of 3GB (1GBx3) and 6GB (2GBx3), Transcend’s DDR3-1333 triple channel memory kits’ three identically matched DDR3 modules are carefully matched for use in triple-channel configuration, which together provide memory bandwidth of up to 32GB/sec. To ensure extra-stability and signal integrity, all DDR3 modules use robust PCBs that fully comply with JEDEC standards.Each chip is manufactured using small Fine-Pitch Ball Grid Array (FBGA) packages with extra contacts to assure better thermal dissipation, electrical efficiency and reliable computing quality.

Transcend memory modules are built to the highest specifications with the finest chips and materials available, and undergo rigorous testing to ensure they provide the best performance possible. All Transcend memory modules come with a lifetime warranty and the support of a global service network.

New Info of Phenom II X4 940 Unveiled

2009-01-07T07:51:00.000-08:00

AMD Phenom II X4 is ready to debut this Thursday, though it still looks quite mysterious. The latest information indicates Phenom II X4 940 performs as well as Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450/Q9550 while costs a little bit lower.

The power consumption of Phenom II X4 940 ranges from 60 to 70 Watt under load.With the help of a normal air-cooling cooler, the processor can be overclocked between 3.2 to 3.6GHz without increasing voltage.

AMD unleashes linux code for general purpose computing

2009-01-04T05:33:00.000-08:00

AMD, the chip rival for Intel has released “the fundamental Linux code” that is needed to develop open-source 3D-acceleration drivers for its R600 and R700 ATI graphic-processors series.

The news is intended for those who want to create drivers for potent GPU series of ATI Radeon HD 2x00, HD 3x00 (both R600), and Radeon HD 4x00 (R700). Also, unleash of open source code is good for Linux-lovers who have access to the R600/700’s 3D powers.
The announcement made by GPU to support the recently released open-source OpenCL 1.0 allowing GPU to be used for general-purpose computing (GPGPU), it is expected that GPUniverse is moving slowly toOpen Source Software (OSS) model.
The OSS future looks bright for GPUs. The segment was still new to AMD as Intel is open with its drivers. OSS development should proceed swiftly, both in 3D acceleration and GPGPU.

Phenom II B clocks revealed

2009-01-04T05:28:00.000-08:00

AMDs business CPUs will clock all the way to 2.9GHz. The slowest dual cores branded as Athlon X2 B21 will work at 2.7GHz and this is 2MB L2 CPU based on Regor 45nm dual core. Athlon X2 B23 will be the faster iteration of this CPU clocked at 2.9GHz. These CPUs will feature a TDP of under 65W.

The three-core Phenom II X3 B71, based on Heka three-core, will run at 2.8GHz and it comes with 7.5MB of cache. The faster one is Phenom II X3 B73 and this one works at 2.8GHz, all under a 95W TDP design.

The quad-core business CPUs are Phenom II X4 B91 with 2.6GHz core clocke and 8MB of total cache and this Deneb based CPU will also fit to under 95W TDP. The faster business Phenom is AMD Phenom II X4 B93 and this CPU will reach 2.8GHz.

They are all set to launch in early Q3 2009.

GeForce GTX 285 and Core i7-920 OC 2.88GHz 3DMark results revealed

2009-01-04T05:24:00.000-08:00

Test setup:

Core i7-920 OC 2.88GHz
GeForce GTX 285

In 3DMark05 it got 20510 and in 3DMark Vantage it got P12945 and the GPU was 11923.

Updated to 55nm from 65nm, GeForce GTX 285 TDP is 183W and when idle it was 39℃ and when load it was 52℃.

via: .hardspell.com

Phenom II X4 prices surface

2009-01-04T05:16:00.000-08:00

Phenom II X4 is slated to appear in early January and the processor that will be the first consumer processor from AMD made at the 45nm node has been showing a lot of promise so far. The pricing has been anything but official though, but as stores are starting to list the new models, we are starting to get a feel for where it will start. Two models should launch on January 8th, Phenom II X4 920 (2.8GHz) and Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition (3.0GHz).

Will cost around 220€ for the Phenom II X4 920 and 250€ for the Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition, while the dollar prices will be slightly higher, around $230 and $280 respectively. Right now this puts them around the same price range as the cheapest Core i7 processor, the Intel Core i7 920, but then the overall platform cost is much lower on the AMD side.

Retailers Beat AMD to Phenom II Launch

2008-12-30T14:48:00.000-08:00

Online retailers are taking orders for Advanced Micro Devices' upcoming Phenom II processors, leaking chip details ahead of the company's processor announcement plans for early January.Two new quad-core Phenom II processors, aimed at high-end desktops, will start shipping on Dec. 27, according to retail Web sites. AMD plans to announce the chips next month at the International Consumer Electronics Show to be held in Las Vegas between January 8 and 11.

The quad-core Phenom II chips run at speeds from 2.8GHz to 3GHz and include 8MB of cache. The chips are capable of achieving higher speeds under certain circumstances though. AMD overclocked Phenom II processors to run at up to 4GHz on air-cooled systems, and up to 5GHz on liquid-nitrogen cooling earlier this year.

The Fastest Processor Ever :Intel Core i7 Extreme

2008-12-30T14:46:00.000-08:00

Intel has launched its most advanced desktop processor ever called the Intel Core i7 processor. The first member of a new family of Nehalem processor designs, it speeds video editing, immersive games and other popular Internet and computer activities by up to 40 percent without increasing power consumption.

Intel Turbo Boost Technology automatically adjusts the clock speed of one or more of the four individual processing cores for single- and multi-threaded applications to boost performance. The Core i7 processor more than doubles the memory bandwidth of previous Intel “Extreme” platforms, speeding the transfer of computer bits and bites in and out of the processor with Intel Quickpath Technology. Intel’s Hyper-Threading Technology allows multiple computing threads to run simultaneously, effectively enabling it to do two things at once, so the Core i7 quad-core processor delivers 8-threaded performance.

Each Core i7 processor has an 8 MB level 3 cache and three channels of DDR3 1066 memory to deliver the best memory performance of any desktop platform. Intel’s top performance processor, the Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition, also removes overspeed protection, allowing further increase in the chip’s speed.

AMD Athlon X2 7750 Review

2008-12-28T08:26:00.000-08:00

AMD is also launching a new CPU series codenamed Kuma. This is a Stars core with a 2MB L3 cache and the Hypertransport bus runs at 1.8Ghz instead of 1GHz of most dual cores. We don't have a lot more technical information on the processor at this time but we'll update this review when we get more. For now here's what you probably care about: benchmarks and overclocking.

Here's our test system.

Mother Board Gigabyte 790GX
Memory Corsair XMS 4GB
Hard Drive Western Digital SE 16 750GB
Case Tsunami Thermaltake
Display Samsung SyncMaster 30"

Windows Vista x86 SP1 was our test system with ATI Catalyst 8.12 drivers. The only vanilla X2 we had on hand was the X2 5000+ which runs at 2.6GHz so we down clocked our 7750 to 2.6GHz from 2.7GHz. Usually this is fairly accurate representation of what a processor with that stock clock would perform at though occasionally it is faster.

With more performance comes more power taking another 20W to run at idle and 25W at load under Valve Map creation benchmark under load. Cool 'n Quiet was disabled with testing.

Kuma seems like a good bump up from the previous Athlon 64 X2 dual cores though the L3 cache and higher Hypertransport bus do increase overall power consumption. We don't have retail pricing at this time but we will update the review when we see the processor at e-tailers. We wish we had time to compare this to an Intel dual core processors but unfortunately we're a bit strapped for time. This should definitely help keep AMD more competitive in the dual core arena and is a nice part to tide things over until Phenom II.

ARM and x86 Microprocessors for Portable Device Market

2008-12-28T08:20:00.000-08:00

The processor vendors supplying chips for ultra-mobile devices (UMDs) are playing a pivotal role in how this market is shaping up. x86-based processors are well entrenched in the PC world and ARM-based processors are well entrenched in the handset world. It is well known that the war is coming, but it remains to be seen who will benefit from it.

Since UMDs sit right between the PCs and handsets in terms of power, size, and function, x86-based and ARM-based processors will compete in the UMD space and are already fighting it out, starting with marketing wars.

“x86-based processor vendors are in a very good position in the near term as far as product wins and market share are concerned. However, as mobile internet devices (MIDs) start to surpass netbooks in shipment volumes, ARM-based solutions will be in a better position,” said ABI Research analyst Philip Solis.

Processors based on the x86 architecture hold a key advantage in that they are compatible with all x86-based applications – the same PC applications most people use today.

Since they evolved in a more portable and mobile device world, ARM-based processors have always excelled at low power consumption. For devices such as MIDs that may be used very heavily all day or may need to last for days without recharging, ARM-based processors hold the advantage.

The x86 vendors will have to make significant advancements in terms of power consumption while executing instructions in order to put up a better fight across the whole UMD space, while ARM is working with software vendors to ensure that as they develop processor architectures and instruction sets, the latest versions of software are compatible.“The future shape of this market will be determined by engineering success on the x86 side versus business success on the ARM side,” Mr. Solis concluded.
via:xbitlabs

AMD OverDrive update to 2.1.5 2009

2008-12-28T06:28:00.000-08:00

AMD has released a new version of OverDrive, the latest version 2.1.5.

AMD OverDrive is a powerful OC software, it allow you to adjust your processor, memory and graphics settings to push the performance envelope further than it has ever gone before.

Bug fixed:

-Fixed AtuoClock will cause VUP.

-Fixed error message with GPU BIOS.

-Fixed wrong CPU temperature.

-Fixed RV770 memory capacity and frequency incorrect.

-Fixed CPU frequency incorrect.

Download AMD OverDrive 2.1.5

AMD's new Quad-Cores shipping started early

2008-12-28T05:05:00.000-08:00

In a surprising move, online vendors have begun to offer AMD’s latest quad-core processors a while before they have been actually displayed to the public. The new processors on offer are the quad-core Phenol II chips, designed to run at at speeds from 2.8GHz to 3GHz and come with 8MB of cache.
Among these the Phenom II X4 920 runs at 2.8GHz and is being retailed for between $271 and $317 USD while the Phenom II X4 940 which runs at 3GHz is being sold foranything between $304 and $373 USD, depending on the online store. They run on DDR2 platforms and will be moved to DDR3 platforms based on the AM3 sockets, later this year.

This move comes as a big surprise, because AMD has not yet introduced these processors. Their launch is earmarked for CES 09, which will be held in January '09.

Core 2 Duo vs. Core 2 Quad by Intel

2008-12-20T03:32:00.000-08:00

The contrast between dual and quad-core CPUs.

Intel claims that dual-core is best for:

1. Maximizing productivity for multi-tasking business users
2. IT builds with numerous background applications
3. Demanding office applications and collaboration software

Intel Quad-core is best for:

1. CAD design and 3D rendering for advanced business applications
2. Complex calculations such as Monte Carlo and Black-Scholes
3. HD Video Encoding for business video authoring

In Office productivity Sysmark 2007 test, dual-core is actually some 15 percent faster than the Quad-core and Intel is comparing E8600 at 3.33GHz and Q9400 at 2.67GHz, both priced at around €220 price tag. In Complex calculation Excel 2007, Monte Carlo Simulation this same quad-core can end up 21 percent faster than the dual-core. Intel left out 3D gaming from this equation simply as it tries to sell the PCs to business customers who should not be playing Call of Duty at work hours, but at the same time tells most of you that you might not need a Quad-core.

Phenom II 940 3GHz reviewed

2008-12-20T03:30:00.000-08:00

GameWare have put AMD's Phenom II through its paces and the scores look legit.

They managed to push the Phenom II 940 Black to 4200MHz using only a Zalman 9700NT cooler. They claim to have experienced motherboard problems during the benches, and the lack of proper bios support for the new CPU put an end to their overclocking efforts. The outfit tried to overclock it on Biostar, Jeway and DFI boards, and the max score was reached on Biostar's Tforce TA790GX A2.

The OC scores in the charts were reached on an Asus M3A32-MVP Deluxe board, and the CPU ran at 3800MHz with a multiplier of x19. Core temperature was rather low, averaging around 50°C. Here's a full spec of the testbed: Asus M3A32-MVP deluxe, 2GB Corsair Dominator 1066, Force3d HD4870 X2, HDD Western Digital 500GB 16MB cache, PSU ACBEL 800 R8, Zalman 9700NT cooler.

Compared to the old Phenom 9950, the II shows promise. It averages 20-25 percent higher scores in most tests stock clocked, and oveclocked the gap widens to as much as 50 percent.

You can see the charts and some photos on www.gameware.ir and on our discussion board, here.

Scythe delivers stabilizer for AM2 coolers

2008-12-20T03:28:00.001-08:00

Scythe has now released an AMD K8/AM2 CPU stabilizer. Set to help the mounting of heavy processor coolers, the package provided includes a back-plate, a retention bracket, a spacer, screws, thermal grease and a wrench and will work for Socket 754, 939, 940 and AM2 cooling solutions.Now shipping, the K8/AM2 CPU stabilizer is priced at 6.90 Euro / $11.50 without VAT.

AMD K10 Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition reviewed

2008-12-16T03:41:00.000-08:00

AMD K10 Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition reviewed Test setup:

Compared with: Athlon X2 7750 Black Edtion, Athlon 64 X2 5200+(Rev.F2) and Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition

CPU: Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition
Chipset: AMD 790GX+SB750
MB: GA-MA790GP-DS4H
DRAM: DDR2-800 (1GB×2/5-5-5-18)
VGA: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280(GeForce Release 180.48)
HDD: Seagete Barracuda 7200.11(ST3500320AS)
OS: Windows Vista Ultimate Service Pack 1

For Athlon 64 5200+ and Phenom X4 9950 BE are 2.6GHz, so we decreased 7750 BE to 2.6GHz while use the default 2.7GHz results for reference.

AMD K10 Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition reviewed

via hardspell.com

Intel Core i7 Overclocking Temperatures

2008-12-12T03:06:00.000-08:00

Core i7 Overclocking

Introduction:

It is now time for some temperature tests and to see how high these processors can be overclocked using the ASUS P6T motherboard. So it was now time to see how hot these babies got on a one hour OCCT stress test.

Intel Core i7 Overclocking Temperatures

The bus speed is down in 2 MHz decrements with stress tests at each level and success arrived at 168 MHz. Next up was the Multiplier, which we toggled around a bit until we hit 4 GHz on the 965EE while the 920 stayed at 3360 MHz due to its multiplier limit of 20x. Increasing the voltage wasn’t doing us any good as we weren’t able to manage a stable one hour stress test. Although, higher clocks could be possible with a better cooling solution and a lot more time.

Conclusion:

From this you can say the fact that the Core i7 has started out as a good overclocker. Getting to the sweet spots wasn't really difficult and all this achieved on the stock air cooling solution provided by Intel and stock core voltages. We feel that with better cooling and a lot more time, these processors can be taken even further to new heights.

source

Intel announced completion of 32nm Process Development Phase

2008-12-12T03:03:00.000-08:00

Intel announced that it had completed the development phase of its next-generation manufacturing process that further shrinks chip circuitry to 32 nanometers.

The company said that it is on track for production readiness of this future generation using even more energy-efficient, denser and higher performing transistors in the fourth quarter of 2009.Intel will provide technical details around the 32nm process technology along with several other topics during presentations at the International Electron Devices meeting (IEDM) next week in San Francisco.

Finishing the development phase for the company's 32nm process technology and production readiness in this timeframe means that Intel remains on pace with its ambitious product and manufacturing cadence referred to as the company's "tick-tock" strategy.That plan revolves around introducing an entirely new processor microarchitecture alternating with a cutting edge manufacturing process about every 12 months.

The Intel 32nm paper and presentation describe a logic technology that incorporates second-generation high-k + metal gate technology, 193nm immersion lithography for critical patterning layers and enhanced transistor strain techniques. These featuresenhanced transistor strain techniques. These features enhance the performance and energy efficiency of Intel processors. Intel's manufacturing process has the highest transistor performance and the highest transistor density of any reported 32nm technology in the industry, the company claims.

"Our manufacturing prowess and resulting products have helped us widen our lead in computing performance and battery life for Intel-based laptops, servers and desktops," said Mark Bohr, Intel Senior Fellow and director of process architecture and integration. "As we've shown this year, the manufacturing strategy and execution have also given us the ability to create entirely new product lines for MIDs, CE equipment, embedded computers and netbooks."

Other Intel IEDM papers will describe a low power system on chip version of Intel's 45nm process, transistors based on compound semiconductors, substrate engineering to improve performance of 45nm transistors, integrating chemical mechanical polish for the 45nm node and beyond; and, integrating an array of silicon photonics modulators. Intel will also participate in a short course on 22nm CMOS Technology.

AMDs Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition

2008-12-09T05:14:00.000-08:00

Donanimhaber.com managed to get their hands on AMDs Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition CPU which is also known as the fastest dual-core Kuma 65nm processor. The Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition works at 2.7GHz and has 1MB of L2 cache, 2MB of L3 cache and an unlocked multiplier.

According to the results over at Donanimhaber, the clock on the fastest Kuma is enough to beat Intels Core 2 Duo E6420. The E6420 works at 2.13GHz and has 4MB of L2 cache. Despite the slower clock speed, the E6420 is more expensive than the Athlon X2 6500, so far the only listed Kuma based AMD processor in Europe, which retails at around €100 and works at 2.3GHz. Intels E6420 is currently listed at around €150.

The good news is that these guys managed to easily overclock the Athlon X2 7750 from 2.7GHz to 3.4GHz. At 3.1GHz, this Kuma easily outperforms Intels E8200 and in some cases even the E8400 which is clocked at 3.0GHz.

3GHz Phenom II to launch at $275

2008-12-09T05:10:00.000-08:00

Phenom II may be at the heels of Intels Core i7 on the price ladder, according to EE Times. The site has posted prices for a couple of the upcoming Phenom II processors, and it claims AMDs upcoming 3GHz CPU will launch at $275—just $9 below the volume price of Intels 2.66GHz Core i7-920.

EE Times goes on to say the slower, 2.8GHz Phenom II will cost $235, which would put it in roughly the same ballpark as Intels new 2.5GHz Core 2 Quad Q8300. Of course, even the 3GHz Phenom II might not compete directly with any Core i7 for a while. That's because the AMD chip will work with DDR2 memory and much cheaper motherboards than Intels new brainchild. More realistically, a $275 Phenom II would end up facing the Core 2 Quad Q9400.

Both 2.8GHz and 3GHz Phenom II variants should launch at the Consumer Electronics Show in early January. Puzzlingly, EE Times also mentions 65nm Phenom II flavors, even though AMDs own presentation slides tie the Phenom II name to the new 45nm design.

Intel dual-core Celeron mobile CPUs

2008-12-09T05:08:00.000-08:00

Intel won't make a big deal about it, the first dual-core Celeron mobile processors have now been released. Made on 65nm process technology, the T1700 and T1600 are clocked at 1.83GHz and 1.66GHz respectively, have 1MB of L2 cache, a FSB of 667 MHz and a TDP of 35W. Not set on breaking any speed records, the fresh Celeron T1700 and T1600 are priced at $86 and $80 respectively (in 1000-unit tray quantities).

Three Pentium dual-cores to get new prices

2008-12-07T08:09:00.000-08:00

Intel plans to adjust a new prices after it lunches its Pentium dual core E5400 CPU. This CPU clocked at 2.7GHz with FSB 800 and 2MB cache will launch on January 18th and it will cost $84 at launch.

This announcement will also meant that Pentium dual-core E5300 CPU clocked at 2.6GHz with FSB 800 and 2MB cache launched on the 30th of November will drop from $86 to $74.

Last one affected with this small price adjustment will be the Pentium dual-core E5200 CPU clocked at 2.5GHz with FSB 800 and 2MB cache that will drop from current $84 to $64.

At the same time Core 2 Duo E7500 will debut with 2.93GHz, FSB 1066 and 3MB of cache for $133 and this will directly affect the E7400 2.8GHz CPU with the same spec as it will drop from current $133 to $113.

This definitely mean that you should look forward to January 18th, at least if you want to buy some of these CPUs of 45nm quad-cores.
via hardspell.com

AMD 45nm Business Class CPUs

2008-12-07T07:58:00.001-08:00

Introduced in April, AMD's Business Class line-up of processors are expected to soon get a few updates but those looking for 'B- tagged 45nm parts will have to wait quite a while. As it seems, AMD is currently planning the introduction of two new 65nm Phenom Business Class models - 9850B and 8850B, in Q1 and is readying 45nm 'B' CPUs for Q3 2009.

The 45nm Business line-up is expected to include the quad-core Phenom II X4 B90, triple-core Phenom II X3 B70 and dual-core Athlon X2 B20 series processors. All these parts will come in an AM3 package and feature integrated DDR3-1333 memory controllers.

45nm Processors Added to AMD Business Platform Family

2008-12-04T03:58:00.000-08:00

According to AMD’s plan, it will unveil Phenom X4 9850B and Phenom X3 8850B with AM2+ socket in the first half of 2009, and then follow with brand-new “BXX” Series processors in Q3. Phenom II X4 B90, Phenom II X3 B70 and Athlon X2 B20 are equal to the consumer processors - Phenom II X4 900, Phenom II X3 700 and Athlon X2 200. Based on 45nm 50I technology, they all feature AM3 socket and support DDR2 or DDR3 memory.

Phenom II X4 B90 Series feature 4 cores, and their L2/L3 cache capacity is 8MB. They’re scheduled to come out with 2 verisons of 2.8GHz B93 and 2.6GHz B91, with 95W TDP. X3 B70 feature 3 cores with 7.5MB L2/L3 cache, coming out with versions of 2.9GHz B22 and 2.7GHz B71 of 65W TDP.

The existing processors for business platforms include Phenom X4 9000, Phenom X3 8000 and Athlon X2 5000. They are added a postfix of “B”, which is the only difference from consumer platforms. For instance, the corresonding model of Phenom X4 9600 is named as Phenom X4 9600B.

via expreview.com

Phenom II CPUs to be hitting stores in February

2008-12-04T03:55:00.000-08:00

Already having announced their presence at the CES 2009, the 45nm-built Phenom II processors apparently aren't in a hurry to hit shelves. According to a fresh report, the Phenom II X4 920 (2.8 GHz) and 940 (3.0 GHz) will only be showcased, demoed, praised at CES in January with their retail availability being slated for February 4th. A few online stores have already listed the two Phenom II CPUs but obviously, they were up on pre-order.

Intel plans 'Merom' Core 2 CPU phase out

2008-12-04T03:54:00.000-08:00

Intel has been adding 65nm processors to the phase out list recently with the latest 'damned' being quite a few 'Merom' Core 2 mobile processors. As just announced, the chip company is preparing to phase out both the tray and boxed versions of the 2.80 GHz Core 2 Extreme X7900 and the 2.60 GHz T7800, 2.40 GHz T7700, 2.0 GHz T7300, 1.8 GHz L7700 and 1.4 GHz L7300 Core 2 Duo processors.The discontinuance schedule will see Intel taking orders for the mentioned CPUs until April 3rd (2009) and deliver the box and tray products until July 3rd 2009 and June 4th 2010 respectively.

via tcmagazine.com

AMD Phenom II gets closer

2008-12-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

MoreComputers.com added a listing for a pair of the new Phenom II processors. The listings show that the Phenom II are to debut in 2.8GHz and 3.0GHz models, the 920 and 940 Black Edition.

The AMD Phenom II X4 920 is said to be going for about £190, while the X4 940 Black Edition comes out at £230. With faster clock speeds and bigger levels of cache, it may be that we'll get to see a real clash of the titans new year in the consumer microprocessor market. Nonetheless, we will have to keep a close eye out for Phenom II performance benchmarks at the beginning of next year.
via tcmagazine.com

AMD Phenom II triple-core and quad-core

2008-11-27T05:03:00.000-08:00

AMD’s exclusive rival on X86 microprocessor, Intel launched Core i7 Series Processor last week in a big way. Core i7 becomes a quad-core processor, but it doesn’t suppress its competitor by numbers, even though it supports Hyper-threading. AMD doesn’t think much about this, but users will do.

Phenom II Processor’s code name is “Deneb”. It will be the first triple-core processor backed by 45nm technology. AMD Phenom II triple-core and quad-core will be named in a new way. Triple-core will come out as Phenom II 700 Series, and quad-core products include Phenom II 800 and 900 Series with 6MB and 8MB of total L2 and L3 cache respectively.

Phenom II Series will come to us with 920 and 930 models firstly. The naming scheme is the same as Core i7. Their release date is scheduled to be Jan 18th, but according to latest information, it might be postponed till March 2009. The frequency of Phenom II 920/940 is 2.8GHz and 3.0GHz. They feature AM2+ socket, supporting DDR2-1066, not DDR3. Their TDPs are as high as 125W.

Besides improved L2+L3 cache capacity, slightly upgraded frequency and additional DDR3 support (920/940 only support DDR2), we can say 45nm Phenom II processor hardly bring something new to us. I am afraid that AMD will need to worry about its situation in 2009.

source en.expreview.com

Phenom X4 9950 hits 4.5Ghz

2008-11-24T05:37:00.000-08:00

This entry has just been submitted to the cpu-z database: 9950 at 4.5GHz using 1.86v and LN2. Has yet to be confirmed valid, although it all seems pretty solid. Hooray for AMD yet again?

Core 2 processors with TDP desktop systems

2008-11-24T04:59:00.000-08:00

Despite the recent debut of solutions based on Nehalem architecture, marketed under the brand name of Core I7 few days, Intel seems not willing to stop the development of solutions Core 2 Duo systems for Socket 775 LGA least for the first part of 2009 .

The debut of some new cpu with Intel quad core architecture characterized by low levels of consumption of particular content, with maximum TDP in 65 Watt said.

The models are to debut Core 2 Quad Q9550, with clock frequency of 2.83 GHz and L2 cache of 12 Mbytes, Core 2 Quad Q9400 with clock of 2.66 GHz and 6 MB of L2 cache and Core 2 Quad Q8200 with clock of 2.33 GHz and L2 cache of 4 MB. For all these cpu are the same value as TDP quad pumped bus and by 1333 for MHz clock.he prices are respectively 369, 320 and 245 U.S. dollars excluding taxes.

The following versions of the processor that will be presented by Intel during the month of November.
Core 2 Extreme QX9300
Core 2 Quad Q9100
Core 2 Extreme X9100
Core 2 Duo T9600
Core 2 Duo P9500
Core 2 Duo T9400
Core 2 Duo P8600.

AMD Phenom II overclocked to 6.3GHz

2008-11-24T04:39:00.000-08:00

After initial disappointment with the original Phenom processors, AMD showed off its upcoming 45nm ‘Deneb’ desktop chip – now confirmed as Phenom II – for reviewers at an event in Texas this week, and overclocked the second-generation quad-core part to what some observers said was 6.3GHz.The company reached such clock speeds by using liquid nitrogen at an amazing -196C to cool the processor – apparently the new AMD design works flawlessly from -200C to +100C.

Of course not many people have access to such extreme cooling methods but the demo should at least show that the new Phenom II processors are scalable when it comes to clock speeds and quite stable at high frequencies.

The Phenom II parts were also able to hit 4GHz with air cooling and 5GHz with dry ice cooling. By comparison, Intel's top Core i7 processor listed as a 3.2 GHz part has been overclocked to 4.5 GHz on air cooling alone and some claim to have taken it to 5.7GHz using liquid nitrogen. The top Phenom II chip, due out sometime in the first quarter of 2009, will reportedly list as 3.0 GHz off the shelf.

AMD Phenom II, Overclocks To 5+GHz

2008-11-23T06:02:00.000-08:00

Dragon platform is a combination of an AMD Phenom II X4 processor, Radeon 4800 Graphics cards and an AMD 7 series chipset based motherboard.

However, today’s discussion was keenly focused on AMD's upcoming Phenom II X4 processor, two models of which will launch in early January that will be socket AM2+ compatible. In addition, some time in Q1, AMD will launch new AM3 socket Phenom II X4 processors with support for DDR3-1333 memory. In the short term, (read CES ’08 time frame release) specifically, there will be two chips available with clock speeds starting at 2.8GHz but with a lot of headroom for future clock speed ramps as well as some heavy duty overclocking. In addition, with the transition to 45nm fab process technology for Phenom II, AMD is claiming a 30 – 40% power consumption reduction under full load and up to a 50% reduction under idle conditions.

Things certainly seem to be heating up in Austin and the transition to 45nm for AMD seems to be progressing quite well. We’ll be offering a full performance evaluation and showcase of AMD’s new Phenom II processor in the weeks ahead, so stay tuned.
source

Intel Core i7 CPUs make their official debut

2008-11-21T04:54:00.001-08:00

Top silicon maker and breaker, Intel Corporation has now officially launched the first processors based on the Nehalem architecture. Coming to take over the high-performance desktop segment, the Core i7 CPUs make use of a new Socket - LGA1366, are paired up with a new chipset (X58) and feature a heap of more or less new features.

"Intel has delivered the fastest desktop processor on Earth to the most demanding users on Earth, the ones who are using their PCs for video, gaming and music," said Patrick Gelsinger, senior vice president and general manager of Intel's Digital Enterprise Group. "When you couple what is Intel's biggest leap in chip design with other incredible innovations like Intel's solid state drives, the Core i7 processor has redefined the computer of tomorrow."

Going from 2.66 GHz (Core i7 920), through 2.93 GHz (940) and topping 3.2 GHz (Core i7 965 Extreme Edition), the new 45nm CPUs have four cores and eight threads, integrated triple channel DDR3 memory controller, 8MB of L3 cache, a TDP of 130W and can brag with the auto OC technology called Turbo Boost. As pretty much every performance preview/review has confirmed, the Core i7s are fast as heck but to get them you'll have to dig relatively deep in your pockets as the 'cheapest' model, the Core i7 920, has a price tag of $284 while your average X58 motherboard costs even more (and we didn't include the DDR3 kit). As confirmed by Intel, the Core i7 940 is priced at $562 while the 965 EE is at $999.

source

AMD roadmaps revealed till 2012

2008-11-19T07:33:00.000-08:00

During the Financial Analyst Day, AMD has unveiled several of the roadmaps for the years to come. Because of the increasing competition in the notebook area, as well as the increasing demand for netbooks, AMD will have to work really hard to keep its market share.

The "Puma" platform, with the "Griffin" CPU's, will be replaced in 2009 by the "Tigris" platform, with its "Caspian" processors. The socket S1g2 will be changed to S1g3, a transition that is parallel to that of the desktop-socket, which will change from AM2+ to AM3. The "Caspian" processors will be the first 45nm AMD notebook processors. Apart from the several "Tigris" models, the company will also launch its "Congo" platform with the "Conesus" processor, as well as the "Yukon" platform with the single core "Huron" processor to serve the netbook market.

The current RS780M chipset will be moved to "Congo" in the ultraportable segment. The southbridge will be slightly improved and renamed SB710. The same SB710 will also be used in the "Tigris" platform, combined with an improved RS880M chipset.

In 2010, AMD's first quadcore notebook will appear, it will be part of the 'Danube' platform and the processors will be codenamed 'Champlain'. DDR3 memory will also be introduced in AMD's notebooks. "Nile" will form a compact platform for the dualcore "Geneva" processors, also sporting the DDR3 memory support. The image above shows the roadmap for AMD's processors. In 2011, they will transit the production to 32 nm for all processors. Another interesting thing is that AMD has the same "Liano" processor planned for both desktops and notebooks. The "Orochi" will be AMD's high-end processor, possibly featuring eight cores and over 8 MB cache.

Source: Computerbase

Dell Core i7-ready Studio XPS desktop PC

2008-11-18T05:31:00.001-08:00

Dell's Studio desktops liked intel Nehalem and studio XPS is here and it has already been added to Dell's offer. The new desktop PC has a starting price of $949 and it includes an X58 motherboard, a Core i7 processor, up to 12GB of DDR3 1066 MHz memory, a maximum of 1TB of storage space , and either a Radeon HD 3450 or HD 4850 graphics card.

The Studio XPS also features a 16x DVD writer, 7.1 channel audio, Gigabit Ethernet and comes with Windows Vista Home Premium Edition 64bit SP1 pre-installed. More info about Dell's Studio XPS can be found on Dell's website.

Alienware Core i7 Area-51 X-58 desktop

2008-11-18T05:26:00.000-08:00

Alienware has just introduced the Core i7-powered Area-51 X-58 and ALX X-58 gaming systems. Starting at $1,349, the Area-51 X-58 can be equipped with Core i7 920 (2.66GHz), 940 (2.93GHz) or Core i7 Extreme (3.2GHz) Core i7 CPUs, a X58 motherboard, up to 12GB DDR3 1066 MHz memory, at least a Radeon HD 4670 graphics card, 2TB of storage and even a 4x Blu-Ray writer.

At $3,699, the ALX X-58 has the same CPU and memory options but comes with at least one Radeon HD 3870 X2 or two GeForce 9800 GTX cards, 2TB via two 7,200 RPM drives or 600 GB through two 10,000 RM HDDs, and a Blu-Ray burner.Alienware Core i7 Area-51 X-58 desktop

DELL GAMING LAUNCHES THREE ALL-NEW SYSTEMS FEATURING INTEL® CORE™ i7 AND CORE i7 EXTREME PROCESSORS

· Alienware Area-51® X-58 – Starting at $1,649
· Alienware Area-51® ALX X-58 – Starting at $3,699
· Dell XPS 730x – Starting at $1,999
Miami – Nov. 17, 2008 – Dell Gaming brings unprecedented speed and performance with the launch of the Intel® Core™ i7, offering users the world's most powerful processors on three all-new extreme gaming desktops; the Alienware Area-51® X-58, Alienware Area-51 ALX X-58 and the Dell XPS 730x. By incorporating Intel's breakthrough new microarchitecture into these three dynamic systems, Dell Gaming delivers a revolutionary leap in in-game performance. The Intel Core i7 processor generates a greater number of instructions per clock cycle, enhancing the systems' simultaneous processing capabilities. This translates into improved physics, greater environmental interactivity, more intelligent AI and an overall boost in the immersive, real-to-life experience hardcore gamers demand.

The News
· Available today at www.alienware.com/X58 and www.dell.com/gaming, the Alienware Area-51 X-58 and ALX X-58 feature up to 12GB of triple channel DDR3 memory, while the XPS 730x offers up to 6GB. All three systems utilize the all-new Intel QuickPath Architecture to speed up communication between the processor and components throughout the systems. This delivers faster load times between game levels without sacrificing background applications such as game utility packages, surfing the Net or downloading movies and music. With a performance increase of over 20 percent compared to the previous generation platform, Intel Core i7 processors help these rigs crank out maximum benchmarks at peak game settings.
· In addition to this aggressive performance, the Area-51 X-58, Area-51 ALX X-58 and XPS 730x feature Dell Gaming exclusives such as:
o Alienware AlienFX® customizable lighting controls: Allows gamers to customize the system looks with software-controlled multi-zone lighting. Includes event-driven activities, like changing automatically when programs are launched or email is received.
o Alienware Command Center: Advanced user controls in a centralized, user- friendly access port for exclusive applications such as AlienFX® lighting, AlienFusion power management, and AlienSense facial recognition security features. (Alienware Only)
o XPS internal theater lighting for "under the hood" activities: a series of battery powered LEDs automatically light the interior when the side panel is removed. (XPS Only)
o Dell Gaming's bold, signature case designs, giving gamers maximum customization and an intense, immersive user experience.
· Gaming enthusiasts will be able configure Dell gaming systems to meet their unique specification with options like:
o Air-cooled or AlienIce™ or H2C high-performance cooled CPUs and chipsets
o Video card solutions from both ATI and NVIDIA, and all systems are ATI CrossfireX™ and NVIDIA SLI-ready.
o Multiple single and dual hard drive options, with support for RAID 1, 0, and 1+0 (up to 2TB on XPS, 4TB on Alienware).
o Choice of 750, 1000, 1200-watt power supply (Alienware only)
With Intel Core i7 processors, you get the advantage of:
· Intel 45nm Technology – delivers higher speeds, enhanced efficiency and improved thermal management
· Intel QuickPath Architecture – utilizes an on-board memory controller to move beyond the capabilities of the FSB and enjoy the full benefits of multi-core and microarchitecture-based CPUs
· Intel Hyper-Threading – enables Windows to deliver eight-threaded performance capability on four cores
· 64-Bit OS Ready – processes double the information of 32-bit-based systems, increasing responsiveness and maximizing your hardware's potential
· Intel Turbo Mode – shifts the processor into a higher gear for mind-blowing performance without a heat penalty
The Quotes
"By incorporating the revolutionary capabilities of Intel Core i7 and Core i7 Extreme Edition processors into the Alienware and XPS lines of gaming systems, Dell Gaming continues to lead the industry in delivering performance levels and in-game benchmarks that shatter all previously perceived limitations," says Arthur Lewis, head of Dell gaming group.

"Intel Core i7 processors represent the next stage in the evolution of desktop performance," says Doug Parker, Intel's Director of Marketing for America's Sales and Marketing Group. "By combining this dramatic technology with the expert engineering of Alienware and XPS systems, Intel and Dell are redefining gamers' expectations for power and efficiency."
For more information on Intel Core i7 processors in Alienware and XPS systems, please visit: www.alienware.com/X58 and www.dell.com/gaming.

Phenom II naming scheme and launch plans

2008-11-17T07:25:00.000-08:00

AMD has dropped the plan of releasing any 45nm Phenoms before the end of this year but is readying a full line-up of processors for next year. Set to debut at CES, the Phenom II family includes the X4 900, 800 (Deneb) and 600 (Propus), X3 700 (Heka) and 600 (Rana) plus the X2 200 (Regor) series CPUs.

In Q1, AMD is expected to introduce no less than 8 processors, two of them, the Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition (3.0 GHz) and 920 (2.8 GHz) being AM2+ parts. The DDR3-supporting AM3 line-up will debut with the X4 925 (2.8 GHz), 910 (2.6 GHz), X4 810 (2.6 GHz), 805 (2.5 GHz), X3 720 (2.8 GHz) and 710 (2.6 GHz). The prices of these models are still unknown but hopefully their'll be very competitive.

The Phenom II X3 600 and X2 200s are set to become available in Q2.

Intel Core i7 priced

2008-11-17T05:28:00.001-08:00

Dean Pullen the Inquirer, Monday 17 November 2008. 09:00:00 Available in the UK INTEL'S NEW PROCESSOR brand is now out, in stock, and available in the UK. The new fangled CPU code-named Nehalem, but now branded Core i7, can be picked up at a variety of online distributors for a range of different prices....

AMD to release Phenom II in January

2008-11-16T05:13:00.001-08:00

AMD told analysts yesterday that Phenom II X4 would be launched at CES 2009 in January. This Shanghai-based desktop product of the Deneb core, will serve as a launching platform for AMD's new industry focus, which is on value and mainstream and markedly away from enterprise. AMD's executives also stated that Intel's Nehalem-based Core i7 is out of touch with the marketplace.

The Dragon platform

The Phenom II X4 will be released along with an enthusiast platform called "Dragon." Like the server version announced yesterday, the desktop Phenom II will be a quad-core processor with 8 MB cache (6 MB shared L3, 512 KB L2 per core), support for DDR2 and DDR3 memory. Dragon will provide a range of graphics options from low-end to a "terascale graphics engine," overdrive CPU control and a Fusion optimization tool.

AMD comments on Intel Core i7

AMD's Bob Grim, senior manager of product marketing for AMD's desktop group, categorized Intel's Core i7 as being out of touch with the marketplace. He said, "Expensive motherboards, expensive memory...all expectations says that the processor will be expensive as well." Intel's Core i7 processors priced at $294 for 2.66 GHz, $562 for 2.93 GHz and $999 for 3.20 GHz. See Intel's pricing page.
source

Shanghai Chips from AMD now available

2008-11-16T04:10:00.000-08:00

AMD has released its new Shanghai platform, signaling a move to 45nm. The first chips out the door are quad-core Opteron parts, which AMD claims will deliver up to 35 percent more performance and up to a 35 percent decrease in power consumption when idle.Acording to CNet, a desktop platform (codenamed Dragon) consisting of 45nm Shanghai desktop CPUs along with AMD 700 series chipsets and ATI Radeon HD 4000 graphics will also see the light of day in the same time frame and attempt to compete with Intel's Core i7 platform.

"This enhanced AMD Opteron processor represents the most dramatic performance and performance-per-watt increases for AMD products since the introduction of the world's first x86 dual-core processors nearly four years ago," Randy Allen, AMD senior VP for Computing Solutions Group, said in a statement. "Simply put, the quad-core AMD Opteron is the right technology at the right time."Shanghai, which is essentially a refresh of Barcelona and not an entirely new architecture, supports DDR2-800 memory and comes with a tweaked Direct Connect Architecture. The current batch of 75-watt Shanghai chips will be followed up by a launch of 55-watt Opteron and an SE 105-watt part in Q1 2009.

Shanghai Chips from AMD now available

AMD pushes Fusion platform to 2011

2008-11-16T03:59:00.000-08:00

AMD's executives gave an update of th company's progress toward profitability, products, marketing, manufacturing and operational initiatives on Thursday at the company's 2008 Financial Analyst Day in Sunnyvale, Calif.AMD has changed its original plans to introduce chips that combine CPU and and graphics cores to 2011, at a time where the when it will roll its first 32 nm products.

AMD pushes Fusion platform to 2011

The company has canceled its plans to release in 2010 its first dual-core 45 nm processor that would combine graphics and x86 cores. Instead, AMD will inntroduce in 2010 a four-core notebook processor in a BGA package.

AMD's "rival" Intel is expected to release a notebook processor that includes a graphics core in the end of 2009.AMD's first 32 nm processors will be delivered in 2011. The Orochi (UMPC/notebook) and Llano (mainstream desktop/notebook) chips will be the first to use AMD's next-generation Bulldozer core. The desktop chips will have four x86 cores and support four to eight Mbytes cache and DDR3 memory. The Llano chip will also include a graphics core.

Also in 2011, AMD will deliver Ontario, a 32nkm notebook chip with two x86 and one graphics core, supporting DDR3 memory.
Desktop/notebook Roadmap 2009-2010

AMD also provided details bout the CPU roadmap for mobile and desktop PCs for 2009/2010.

In 2009, the 45nm quad-core "Deneb" CPU (8m cache, DDR2/3) will power the entusiast desktop platforms. The "Propos" quad-core chips will be also available at that time featuring 2MB of cache and they will be found at mainstearm desktop PCs.

In the notebook segment for clients, AMD will release in 2009 the new 2-core "Caspian" CPU (2MB cache, DDR2) followed by the quad-core "Champlain" CPU (2MB cache, DDR3) in 2010. For ultramobiles, AMd prepares the "Conesus" (2-core, 1M cache, DDR2) chip for 2009 and the "Geneva" (2-core, 2M cache, DDR3) chip one year later.

AMD's 45nm desktop CPUs to be named Phenom II?

2008-11-13T10:30:00.000-08:00

Announcing its 45nm Opteron CPUs, AMD said a few things about the upcoming 45nm desktop offer too. First of all, the company has revealed that the CPUs will be part of the successor of the Spider platform which will be known as "Dragon" which will debut in Q1 2009.

The second thing mentioned by AMD was that Dragon will make use of the "new 45nm AMD Phenom II X4 quad-core processors" which, if no typo comes into play, means the Phenom line-up is ready to step up in number and generation. It's yet unknown if both the AM2+ and AM3 45nm parts will bear the "Phenom II" name. We're guessing yes?

AMD launches its 45nm Opteron processors

2008-11-13T10:24:00.000-08:00

AMD launches its 45nm Opteron processors

AMD has now announced the official debut of its first 45nm processors, the 'Shanghai' quad-core Opterons. Still making use of Socket F (1207), the 45nm server CPUs feature HyperTransport, the CoolCore technology, which reduces power to unused sections of each processor to further reduce power consumption., 6MB of L3 cache (up from the 2 MB of 65nm Opterons), an integrated DDR2 memory controller, lower power requirements and generally more processing power.

AMD launches its 45nm Opteron processors

"Flawless execution in bringing the 45nm Quad-Core AMD Opteron processor to market early results in new performance leadership on x86 servers," said Randy Allen, senior vice president, Computing Solutions Group, AMD. "In concert with our OEM and solution provider partners, AMD is addressing the need for enterprises to focus on their bottom line while giving them the innovations they need to build for the future. This enhanced AMD Opteron processor represents the most dramatic performance and performance-per-watt increases for AMD products since the introduction of the world’s first x86 dual-core processors by AMD nearly four years ago. Simply put, the Quad-Core AMD Opteron processor is the right technology at the right time."

The first wave of 45nm processors has already reached stores and the offers of server builders and it includes no less than nine models, all detailed below. Prices are for 1000-unit tray quantities.

Intel is planning to launch Xeon 5500 (Nehalem-EP) and Xeon 3500 series

2008-11-13T07:22:00.000-08:00

Intel is planning to launch Xeon 5500 (Nehalem-EP) and Xeon 3500 series (Nehalem-WS) server CPUs in the first quarter of 2009, according to sources at server makers.

Intel will launch ten CPUs for the Xeon 5500 series: quad-core W5580 (3.2GHz), X5570 (2.93GHz), X5560 (2.8GHz), X5550 (2.66GHz), E5540 (2.53GHz), E5530 (2.4GHz), E5520 (2.26GHz), E5506 (2.13GHz), E5504 (2GHz) and dual-core E5502 with prices at US$1,600, US$1,386, US$1,172, US$958, US$744, US$530, US$373, US$266, US$224 and US$188 in thousand-unit tray quantities.

For the Xeon 3500 series, Intel will launch three CPUs: quad-core W3570, W3540 and W3520 priced at US$999, US$562 and US$284.

In additional news, Intel is planning to phase out seven notebook CPUs including the Core 2 Extreme X7900 and X7800, and Core 2 Duo T7800 and L7700 in January next year.

AMD launches first 45nm, quad-core Shanghai Opterons, hitting desktops Q1

2008-11-13T07:19:00.000-08:00

AMD has been blazing architectural trails well before Nehalem. As EE Times points out, AMD's 65-nm Barcelona was the first quad-core processor with 2MB of shared L3 cache integrated with the Northbridge memory controller. Now AMD has (finally) caught up with its own 45-nm technology under the code-name, Shanghai. AMD's newest quad-core Opteron server chip with 6MB L3 cache now offers up to 35 percent better performance while drawing 35 percent less idle power. Better yet, it's drop-in compatible with Barcelona which should keep IT-types happy as they extend the life of their server farms. Available immediately in 75-watt, quad-core versions running clock speeds from 2.3GHz to 2.7GHz.

"Barcelona was obviously a pretty rough start for them. And that does not appear to be the case for Shanghai," said Dean McCarron, the principal and founder of Mercury Research, a company that tracks chip market movements. "One of the big distinctions was they wanted to be absolutely sure that Shanghai was ready to go."

AMD launches first 45nm

Major customers are brimming with accolades for Shanghai. "We've been very pleased. Thrilled with their execution," said with Paul Gottsegen, vice president of Industry Standard Servers, HP, in an interview.

"We'll have products that will be shipping just after launch. We had high performance expectations for the product and it exceeded our expectations," he said. "We're going to put Shanghai across the meat of our product line. You'll see six different rack servers, three different blades, all up and down parts of our product line."

Shanghai technology ahead of Intel

Much of Shanghai's raw technology is a generation ahead of Intel. In a posting at EE Times, Don Scansen, a semiconductor technology analyst at Semiconductor Insights, said that many of the features that Intel is touting as new are not new to AMD and were initially introduced in AMD's Barcelona processor.

"Intel's Nehalem is due out soon, but many of the features of what has widely been touted as a 'new' architecture are only new to Intel," he writes.

source

Atom 330 is benchmarked

2008-11-13T04:54:00.000-08:00

Atom 330 is benchmarked, worse than expected

Atom 330 is benchmarked

Intel's dual-core, 1.6GHz Atom 330 coupled with a 7200 RPM SATA hard drive and 1GB of DDR2 RAM,was benchmarked run-through, and they've got some conflicting details to pass on to you. Overall, the testers found the Atom to be, as expected, faster than the N270, but only by 16 percent. In specific tests, the 330 ran Office 2003 slower than both a 2GHz VIA C7-D and the single-core Atom; PC Pro actually performed the test several times just to be sure it wasn't a glitch... and it wasn't. The 330 performed better running 2D graphics, outpacing the N270 by 41 percent, and it also outperformed its competitors in encoding and multitasking.

Atom 330 is benchmarked

source

Online retailers start listing Core i7 processors

2008-11-12T06:57:00.000-08:00

According to our sources, Intels new Core i7 processors wont appear on store shelves until November 17. That deadline apparently hasnt stopped some e-tailers from putting up early listings for the CPUs and their matching motherboards, though.

PC Connection currently lists the Core i7-920 for $334.02 and the Core i7-940 for $662—both notable markups over the tray prices, which are $284 and $562, respectively, for those two chips (see our review). Meanwhile, PC Mall has listings for a Core i7-920 at $384, a Core i7-940 at $722, and a Core i7-965 at $1,250. PC Mall has none of these chips in stock right now, but PC Connections website says "Limited Quantities Available" in the stock status column.

A search for "Core i7" at PC Connection also lists no fewer than seven motherboards, all based on the Intel X58 Express chipset and priced between $261.38 and $463.98. The cheapest of the bunch looks to be the MSI X58 Platinum, while a Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5 is already in stock and available for $352.87. The Asus P6T Deluxe we reviewed a few days back is up for $392.09, too, well above the $309 suggested retail price.

AMD to release Atom killer netbook CPUs

2008-11-12T06:55:00.000-08:00

We've been hearing rumors of AMD's Atom killer CPUs for over a year now. Unfortunately, vapor doesn't help the bottom line -- it does however explain AMD's conspicuous absence from the deluge of netbooks now trumping laptops for shelf-space. AMD's CEO, Dirk Meyer, has promised on a few occasions (as recently as the Q3 earnings call) to unveil "Bobcat" in November. So seeing the chips on display at tomorrow's analyst conference is pretty much a given. Check back then for all the details.

It will be very interesting to see how AMD approaches the netbook marketplace since just about every netbook announced this year seems to feature an Intel Atom processor. Dell, Toshiba, Lenovo, Acer, Toshiba, Asus and HP seem fully on board with Intel’s solution, which makes me wonder who’s going to be the first manufacturer to adopt AMD’s upcoming netbook processor.

Intel Core 2 Quad

2008-11-10T08:53:00.000-08:00

Verdict: These high-end processors deliver maximum performance, but at a heavy price.

The Core 2 Quad and Core 2 Extreme are the most powerful CPUs in Intel's line-up. As the name implies, Core 2 Quad processors all have four physical cores, while the Core 2 Extreme range includes one dual-core processor - the X6800 - as well as the quad-core QX6000 and QX9000 ranges.

Core 2 Quad

The Core 2 Quad range includes both 65nm and 45nm parts, based on the Kentsfield and Yorkfield cores respectively. Internally, they're effectively a pair of Core 2 Duo processors built into one chip. As AMD likes to point out, this is less efficient than the Phenom's fully integrated design, as cores on different dies can't communicate directly at the chip's full internal speed. Instead, they have to pass data back and forth via the slower front side bus.

The proof is in the results. The Core 2 Quad Q6600 costs just £4 more than AMD's flagship Phenom 9600, but includes 8MB of on-die L2 cache, twice the total available to the Phenom. This helped the Q6600 achieve a storming 1.45 in our benchmarks, while AMD's quad-core processor scored only 1.28. In fact, in our tests, every Core 2 Quad processor easily outpaced anything produced by AMD. That's partly down to bigger L2 caches (up to 12MB for the Q9450 and Q9550) and partly thanks to clock speeds that go as high as 2.83GHz on a 1,333MHz front side bus.

Yet as a desktop processor, the Core 2 Quad range faces stiff competition from Intel's own Core 2 Duos. The E8400, for example, achieved a higher overall benchmark score than the Q9300 in our tests, despite costing £42 less. The extra processing power of the Core 2 Quad only shines through in properly multithreaded applications, such as our 3ds Max test: here, the E8400 took 206 seconds to render a scene that the Q9300 completed in 156 seconds. But if you're looking for an all-rounder, the Core 2 Duo is better value.

Broad Software Ecosystem Support from AMD

2008-11-10T05:39:00.001-08:00

AMD today announced ecosystem support by leading x86 operating system (OS) and virtualization partners for the new Quad-Core AMD Opteron processor, codenamed “Shanghai.” Built on 45nm process technology, the enhanced processor will offer innovations for AMD software partners like Microsoft, Red Hat, Sun Microsystems and VMware specifically designed to improve OS and virtualization performance. Strategic improvements in comparison to 65nm Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors include a larger L3 memory cache, and features designed to further optimize application performance in virtualized environments. The new AMD Opteron processor is uniquely architected to handle more memory-intensive applications while also enabling customers of all sizes to operate a flexible and scalable IT infrastructure.

“AMD is seeing rapid industry growth and demand for cutting edge technologies such as cloud computing and virtualization,” said Earl Stahl, vice president, Software Development, AMD. “As a result of our ongoing collaboration with software partners, AMD customers can soon easily upgrade to the new Quad-Core AMD Opteron processor. Enterprise customers can leverage the ongoing enhanced performance and features like AMD Virtualization (AMD-V) technology that AMD continues to deliver, while protecting the investments made to their current software infrastructure.”With more companies turning to virtualization to help improve data center efficiency and costs, AMD designed the new AMD Opteron processor to deliver a robust platform that can manage customers’ most demanding workloads, such as web hosting and complex database management, helping to maximize the business benefits of virtualization.

ISV Ecosystem Support

By collaborating with leading OS and virtual infrastructure vendors to help ensure applications are optimized for the new Quad-Core AMD Opteron processor, AMD is providing customers with greater opportunity to utilize the software solutions that best meet the needs of their businesses.

“With the adoption of Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V to address customers’ infrastructure virtualization needs, it’s exciting to see the new Quad-Core AMD Opteron processor coming to market to help improve the performance and scalability of virtualized environments and help provide power savings benefits for customers,” said Mike Schutz, director of product management, Windows Server virtualization at Microsoft. “We look forward to continuing to work closely with AMD to help customers utilize virtualization technologies and enable businesses of all sizes to make the most of their IT investments.”

“Red Hat is committed to bringing performance, reliability and security to our customers as they expand their use of open source virtualization throughout the enterprise,” said Brian Stevens, CTO at Red Hat. “As evidenced by our recent collaboration with AMD on live migration technology, Red Hat continues to deliver business value to customers via high-performance, standards-based virtualization solutions for heterogeneous environments.”

“Sun is committed to working with AMD to include optimization and tuning advancements in the Sun xVM virtualization software portfolio in order to meet the desktop and server virtualization requirements of our customers,” said Jim McHugh, vice president of marketing, Datacenter, Sun Microsystems. “Sun xVM Server, a datacenter-grade server virtualization solution, runs on 45 nm Quad-Core AMD Opteron™ processor-based systems and offers customers the ability to virtualize and manage heterogeneous workloads, including Windows, Linux and Solaris™ operating systems, as guests. Sun xVM Server is an easy-to-use, open source hypervisor that enables a simplified and secure environment for our customers.”

“The VMware platform helps AMD customers to minimize capital and operating costs, increase availability of mission-critical applications, and promote energy efficiencies,” said Shekar Ayyar, vice president of infrastructure alliances, VMware. “The advanced virtualization features in the new Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors, such as AMD Extended Migration and AMD-V with Rapid Virtualization Indexing, can extend those benefits to optimize application performance in VMware virtualized environments.”

AMD also recognizes support for its forthcoming and current Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors from software and virtualization partners such as Parallels, Transitive and Virtual Iron. For more information about the software support of the Quad-Core AMD Opteron processor. source

Intel core i7 CPU BOX

2008-11-10T05:34:00.000-08:00

Core i7 920 runs at 2.66GHz, L2 cache 256KB per core, L3 shared cache 8MB, the integrated memory controller supports tri-channel DDR3 memory 800MHz/1066MHz, TDP 130W. Today the CPU’s price is 2450CNY, around 358USD.

Core i7 920 retail version.

Core i7 920 retail version.
Core i7 920 retail version.

Core i7 920 retail version.

source:en.expreview.com

Intel Core 2 Duo T7400 and L7400 moving to G-0 stepping next year

2008-11-08T07:25:00.001-08:00

Intel has recently announced that three of its Napa mobile processors, the 2.16 GHz T7400 and 1.50 GHz L7400 Core 2 Duos and the Celeron M 530 will be moving to the G-0 stepping, from the current B-2 in Q1 2009. The new revisions will have a new CPUID (06FBh) and a die size that has been optimized for manufacturability but wont feature any thermal changes. Given the new CPUID, new BIOS is required to properly detect the G-0 processors.

Intel is set to start providing samples of the G-0 mobile CPUS next month - from December 3rd for the PGA parts and December 23rd for BGA parts, and will begin shipping them in large numbers from February.

Intel Core i7 Nehalem launching on November 17

2008-11-08T07:22:00.000-08:00

Intel provided information about its next-generation micro-architecture (Nehalem) with the Core i7 processors at a media event on Wednesday in Athens, Greece, prior to the worldwide official release of the system on November 17.Intel Core i7 Nehalem launching on November 17

The event ran under the headline of "the fastest processor on the planet". The two major characteristics of the new i7 architecture are the triple-channel integrated memory controllers and the new interface called Quick Path Interconnect (QPI). Other highlights include the monolithic die to consolidate all four cores in a single piece of silicon, and the shared L3 cache. Further improvements include the use of the Hyper-threading as well as the Turbo Boost technologies. The Core i7 processors are also optimized to operate with Intel's X58 chipset.The Corei7 series will feature three quad-core models: The 2.66 GHz Core i7 920 will aim for the sub-$1000 class of PCs, the 2.93 GHz Core i7 940 for more expensive PCs in the $1500-$2000 range and the 3.2 GHz 965 Extreme Edition at enthusiast PCs.

The prices (1K pieces) of these CPUs are $999 for the Extreme Edition, $562 for the 940 and $284 for the 920.The X58 Express chipset covers both the northbridge/southbridge operations. The X58 IOH supports up to 36 PCIe 2.0 lanes. Depending on the processor model, QPI may run at either 6.4 GT/sec (Core i7-965) or 6.4 GT/sec (Core i7-940, i7-920) to communicate with the X58 Express chipset in each direction. This is twice the bandwidth of Intel's currently available X48 chipset, plus the full-duplex transport instead of the half-duplex. AMD's HyperTransport 3.0 still has an advantage herewith up to 41.6GB/s of bi-directional bandwidth.However, the X58 Express does not support the legacy PS/2 IDE, serial or parallel ports.

Turbo mode

Under the "TurboMode", the utilization of the number of active cores is used to adjust the frequency. For example, if only two cores are active, then there will be much more headroom within the thermal and power envelope and the CPU will be clocked higher. So the "turbo" frequencies of each core depend on the number of cores active. We could say that this is mainly a power saving feature.

Turbo Mode boasts single threaded applications as well as the performance of multi-threaded applications, according to Intel. Below is a graph that Intel showed with the Core i7 Extreme CPU to process in single-core and quad-core configurations, with Turbo Mode enabled. The graph shows the percent performance increase with Turbo Mode enable.
Technorati Tags: core i7, intel i7, chipset, core i7, gadgets, hardware, Intel, Nehalem Chipset, processor

GlacialTech UFO CPU cooler: fan doubled!

2008-11-08T04:38:00.000-08:00

GlacialTech is one of Intel’s contractor,suppling bundled CPU cooler for the chip giant. Now they have decided not only focus on OEM business, but also going to branded retail market.

The GPU cooler is one of their top product, utilizing two PWM fan, two 8mm heatpipe and two 6mm heatpipe, providing enough airflow for surrounding components. UFO cooler supports almost all current CPUs including LGA775/1160/1366，Socket 754/939/940/AM2/F.

We still waiting for the final announcement of the product, still not sure about its date and price.

Spec:

Material: Cooper base/Al.fins

Dimension of heatpipe: 6mm / 8mm

dimension of fan: 92×92x20mm3

Fan airflow: 38.1 per fan (max.)

Fanspeed: 800~2500

Bearing type: long life sleeve

fan noise: 28dBA per fan (max.)

Pin type: 4 pins 3pins

Fan control type: PWM

Volt:12V
source

Core i7 with decreased TDP in 2009?

2008-11-07T06:54:00.003-08:00

RRumors on Intel's Core i7 are filling the streets. Fudzilla reports that Intel will lower the TDP of its Core i7 processors in 2009.

The claim is based on a quote by an Intel representative. During the IDF in Taipei it would've been mentioned that Intel is working on two processors with a lower TDP than the current 130 Watt. These two are claimed to be scheduled for release in the first half of 2009

Intel mobile processors for higher clock speeds

2008-11-07T06:54:00.001-08:00

Intel is transitioning seven small-package Core 2 Duo CPUs as well as one Celeron M processor to new steppings, which will include “speed enhancements” for the Montevina notebook platform and lay the foundation for a higher clock speed, the company said.

The Core 2 Duo SL9300 (1.60 GHz), SL9400 (1.86 GHz), SP9300 (2.26 GHz) and SP9400 (2.40 GHz) will be moved from a C-0 stepping to E-0, while the Celeron M ULV 723 (1.2 GHz), Core 2 Solo SU3300 (1.20 GHz, single-core), Core 2 Duo SU9300 (1.20 GHz), and SU9400 (1.40 GHz) will switch from M-0 to R-0. The effect of both stepping changes is the same – there are speed path improvements, which will enable higher frequency models, according to Intel. There are no electrical, mechanical or thermal changes.

With the exception of the Celeron M model, the conversion affects only small package processors: SP models that focus on performance, SL version that have a greater focus on energy efficiency as well as SU versions that solely focus on energy efficiency. Intel defines SP processors as small-package CPUs with a thermal envelope of 20-29 watts, SL processors with 12-19 watts and SU processors with less than 12 watts. We can’t really remember a time when Intel’s processor descriptions were as confusing as they are today, so here is a quick reminder what those cryptic prefixes mean:

Intel told its customers that samples of the new processors will be available by December 8 of this year. Volume shipments are set to begin on or after March 2 of next year.

The company said that there will not be any form, fit and function changes between the stepping conversions, however, system builders will have to apply a BIOS update. This new BIOS will support the new stepping and the previous stepping. source:tgdaily

Intel shows working 80-core processor

2008-11-07T06:53:00.006-08:00

Last year, Intel announced a project to build a processor that would pack no less than 80 cores. While the idea may seem rather futuristic to some, the chip maker is reported to have already demonstrated the CPU at the Gitex Dubai trade show. Reports say that the Santa Clara based company wasn't shy at all at showcasing the processor, with the demonstration being made in the general public area outside of the trade show.

Intel shows working 80-core processor

As we all know, Intel has other multi-core projects in the pipeline, and Larrabee is one of them. However, the showcased processor was not Larrabee, but another CPU. The company is said to have started working on this CPU long before Larrabee came into play. The showcased CPU features 80 small cores, and is able to deliver 1 Teraflops of computing power. The 80-core chip is said to need only 78.35W of power, and that it features a 3.13GHz clock speed.

According to Fudzilla, Intel also detailed several other features of the CPU. The technology it comes with allows for almost all of the cores to be totally shut down when not needed. Also, it seems that the CPU can downclock all the way to 780MHz in such situations, and that the peak Teraflops performance will drop to 0.01. The CPU would only need 6.45W to compute the 4tile, 4x4 matrix mult withcomm equation.The research processor was built under the 65nm process and the company expects it to be ready for the market in the next five or seven years. It seems that Intel will come out with this eighty-core CPU as a part of the future line of sixteen, thirty two, sixty four CPUs, right before a ninety six-core version. The chip manufacturer considers the multi-core as being the near future for the CPU industry, although such an approach might sound rather idealistic.

Since the current multi-core processors are already facing problems concerning the lack of adequate software able to scale on a large number of cores, Intel should also consider conducting a research project in this area as well, so as to allow users to benefit from all the eighty featured cores.

Technorati Tags:intel, cpu, 80-core, processor, gpu, hardware

Intel Centrino 2 refresh said to arrive in April 2009

2008-11-07T06:53:00.005-08:00

While the usual g33k is looking forward for the Nehalem-enriched Calpella, Intel is preparing to introduce a little update to its mobile platform before it. Planned for Q2 2009 and now expected to debut in April the Montevina (Centrino 2) refresh will see to the release of a couple of new 45nm Core 2 Duo processors, the T9900 and T8800, and will make use of the upcoming GM47 chipset, as well as the current GM45 and PM45.

The GM47 will be released in Q1 2009 and while most of its features are already found on the GM45, it will include an updated IGP dubbed 4700MHD. The GM47's graphics core is clocked at 640 MHz, as opposed to the 533 MHz of the GM45's IGP. The Montevina refresh may not be spectacular but it should keep laptop makers busy until Calpella will be ready for release.