Displaying items by tag: CPUs

Intel's Extreme Edition version of Ivy Bridge for LGA2011 socket could be very similar to the existing Sandy Bridge-E. Although the latter has up to eight physical cores (according to some CPUS in the Xeon E5 line) and up to 20 MB of L3 cache, the commercial version of the Sandy Bridge-E Core i7 inside the line has six active cores and up to 15 MB of cache.

It seems like every other amateur computer builder has joined the fan club of either Intel or AMD for their processor needs. It is no secret that Intel builds over-all more capable processors; if you are willing to cough up the extra cash for diminishing returns in the area of performance. AMD has typically been seen as the more cost effective solution for gaming (though, this is highly debatable currently), and sells over all less expensive processors.

Intel has released less expensive Ivy Bridge processors while lowering the price on older Sandy Bridge CPU’s. When the first Ivy Bridge processors came out prices were in mid and high end segment. Now Intel has finally released their budget editions. These are represented by the Core i3 and Pentium CPUs based on the 22nm architecture. They will fill the gaps that currently exist in the low end market. The cheapest is the Pentium G2100T with an OEM price of just $75 (in 1,000 unit lots). It will run at 2.6GHz with only 35Watts of power consumption. The G2100T is followed by the G2120 model that offers two cores running at 3.1GHz and an OEM price of $75.

Back in October of last year we talked a little bit about AMD’s plans and where Rory Reed saw AMD heading. We knew from his past work with Lenovo that he was fascinated with the mobile world and that he felt it was the future of computing. Since that time we have heard him talk more and more about how the current laptops and desktops have more than enough power to do what they need to do. His reasoning is that the computer world is going to shift to the cloud and back into the traditional client/server infrastructure or more accurately the mainframe/terminal infrastructure. Looking at the current state of the cloud the Mainframe/Terminal model is the way that many companies want to go anyway. They want to do all of your calculations, rendering, compiling and then send you the output.  All your “PC” needs to be able to do is display that output. This is the future that Rory Reed envisions for AMD.

AMD has just announced that their Q2 earnings may be as much as 11% lower than expected (over Q1 2012). Originally AMD predicted a gain of 3% sequentially for this quarter, but it looks like a few things did not turn out the way they planned. AMD is mostly blaming the issue on slow channel sales in China and Europe, but also stated that they encountered a weak market which impacted their OEM sales. Both causes are over generalizations of an issue that we saw coming back in 2011; AMD has to get their products into the hands of the consumer.

With the issues that popped up over heat in Ivy Bridge we started to dig deeper into the limitations of the materials currently used. We have been following the progress of Graphene, Carbon Nanotubes, and are even on the lookout for other materials that might be used either alongside these more advanced options or perhaps even in combination (like Graphene and Nanotubes can be). Today we stumbled on an interesting article that covers a new material while also covering a new technology.

Two more pieces of the puzzle are falling into place with the move away from silicon in microprocessors. Silicon has been the mainstay for creating processors for… well for a very long time. However, it has its limitations as the need to make the transistors smaller continues to increase. Even if you are not a believer in More’s Law you still cannot get around the fact that processors (GPU CPU and “other”) are all growing more complex. This means that the number of components continues to grow and we are faced with a couple of choices; either die in the vacuum of space or… no wait that is someone else. The choices are actually very clear; make the processor dies larger and larger or shrink the manufacturing process.

Over the course of the last year or so we have watched as a once solid company has started to crumble into a shadow of its former self. Yes we are talking about AMD and although the trip down the path to where they are now started years ago we have to wonder if there was ever a chance to change things and get the company back on track.

Intel has been enjoying a rather successful few years. After the launch of their first generation Core processors Intel managed to slide neatly by AMD who had been running rings around the Pentium 4 CPU. Things did not stop there though, Intel continued to build on their success working to improve their caching model and the when they were finally ready they dropped the Second Generation of the Core Processor on the Market; this time with an Internal Memory Controller to go with their improved caching. This extended the gap between Intel and AMD a few more feet and lead on to other new products including Lynnfield and then Sandy Bridge with its own GPU built right into the processor die. With the success of these new processors Intel could have just sat back and waited until AMD caught up. Instead they are continuing to move forward and are now brining a new Flagship CPU to the Core i7 lineup. The official name will be the Core i7 3960X and also comes with a new chipset, memory standard, and socket.  So let’s take a look at this new chuck of silicone and see if it deserves its place at the top of the heap.

AMD has faced some rough time recently. After their ATi purchase back in 2006 AMD has had one poor leader after another. Under Hector Ruiz we ended up with the ill-fated $5.4 Billion buyout of ATi. This was a purchase that caused AMD to not have a profitable quarter for almost 5 years. In fact if AMD had not gotten a settlement from Intel in late 2010 they would still be operating in the red. Hector Ruiz was also responsible for the shedding of AMD’s foundries.  This split created Global Foundries and forced AMD as a CPU and GPU manufacturer into a Fabless state. They now have to pay to have their processors made by another company.