Items tagged with Westmere
For months, there have been rumors circulating of a new Intel 15-core CPU, with a particular focus on Big Data analytics, multi-socket systems, and the enterprise market. Well, this past January, we took a trip to Intel's SAP research lab to see the new processors and the rather substantial update coming down the pipe. Unlike Intel's mainstream and basic server products, the truly Big Iron hardware updates on a significantly slower cadence. Haswell chips launched eight months ago for desktop and the Xeon E5 v2 family, based on Ivy Bridge, has been available for months -- but the Xeon E7 processors Intel is replacing today are still based on the old Westmere core, which first debuted in consumer...
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For months, there have been rumors circulating of a new Intel 15-core CPU, with a particular focus on Big Data analytics, multi-socket systems, and the enterprise market. Well, this past January, we took a trip to Intel's SAP research lab to see the new processors and the rather substantial update coming down the pipe. Unlike Intel's mainstream and basic server products, the truly Big Iron hardware updates on a significantly slower cadence. Haswell chips launched eight months ago for desktop and the Xeon E5 v2 family, based on Ivy Bridge, has been available for months -- but the Xeon E7 processors Intel is replacing today are still based on the old Westmere core, which first debuted in consumer...
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Nvidia isn't happy with what it sees as the free pass Intel's upcoming Many Integrated Core (MIC) architecture has gotten on the software front, and it's taken to the blogosphere to challenge it. The post begins with a lengthy discussion of what Nvidia is calling its "hybrid architecture," in which a CPU and GPU get together for great fun and massive execution of properly distributed workloads. The post is conveniently timed to land just before the Texas Advanced Computing Center's (TACC) joint symposium with Intel on highly parallel computing, which kicks off next week. What Nvidia takes issue with, according to the blog, is the idea that using an x86-compatible product like Knights Corner,...
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In the wake of Bulldozer's weak desktop launch, there was some hope that server benchmarks would redeem the chip and give AMD a fighting chance against Intel in at least one of its three core markets. Recent reviews and a comprehensive roundup of formally published results, however, indicate that while BD fares a bit better in servers, it's far from vindicated. AMD's new 6200 Opterons (Interlagos) are often a sidewise move from the older 6100 series, which is based on Magny-Cours. Interlagos is essentially trapped by the same trio of issues that cripple Bulldozer. The shared core design hurts SMP scaling; a 16-core Interlagos scales more like a 13-14 core Magny-Cours. The clock speed increases...
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AMD has announced the immediate availability of new 12-16 core 32nm Opteron processors based on the company's new Bulldozer architecture. According to AMD, these new chips will provide better performance, virtualization scaling, and efficient economics. “Our industry is at a new juncture; virtualization has provided a new level of reliable consolidation and businesses are now looking to the cloud for even more agility and efficiency. We designed the new AMD Opteron processor for this precise moment,” said Paul Struhsaker, corporate vice president and general manager, Commercial Business, AMD. “The wait for the most anticipated new product and architecture for servers is over....
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Sandy Bridge processors have been available for eight months, but Intel's highest-end CPU remains based on the older 32nm Westmere architecture, rather than on SB silicon. A report from VR-Zone suggests Intel's Sandy Bridge-E CPUs may have been delayed for thermal reasons. According to the site, Sandy Bridge-E chips will ship without an Intel standard cooler and may dissipate as much as 180W. To date, Intel has said only that the upcoming processors will have a TDP in line with its previous high-end desktop chips. The upcoming socket will span enthusiast and server systems. Despite appearances, the two statements aren't necessarily linked and should be evaluated separately. Any decision Intel...
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AMD announced the relaunch of its high-end 'FX' processor brand at E3 today, in a move clearly timed to grab the attention of gamers and computing enthusiasts. For those of you who aren't familiar with the brand, it dates back to 2003 and the launch of AMD's then-new 64-bit, K8 architecture. At the time, the standard Athlon 64 brand applied to processors based on Socket 754 with just one channel of DDR RAM. This solution was quite competitive against Intel's fastest P4 Northwood processors, but AMD opted to do more than just match Northwood's performance. Athlon 64 FX processors used Opteron's Socket 940, matched the P4's dual-channel DDR400 memory configuration, and were clocked at 2.2GHz as...
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Intel recently launched a speed bump of their flagship Extreme Edition Core i7 processor, known as the Core i7 990X. It's unlocked and clocked at 3.45GHz stock speed with a Turbo Boost top-end speed of 3.73GHz. Intel claims its the fastest desktop chip on the planet; like geek tiger blood for your PC. The new Core i7-990X is also based on the 32nm Gulftown core and the performance metrics show it's easily the fastest 6-core chip for the desktop currently but of course it'll cost you as well. What do you do when you're the fastest thing around? You just keep on WINNING. It's as if there was tiger blood coursing through your veins. You're so good, you're bi-winning. Heck,...
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What do you do when you're the fastest thing around? You just keep on WINNING. It's as if there was tiger blood coursing through your veins. You're so good, you're bi-winning. Heck, with a six core processor at your disposal, you'd be hexa-winning. Ol' Charlie needs one of these things to go with his rock-star life style. As desktop processors go, Intel's Core i7 900 series line-up is pretty much the Charlie of the computing world. Tiger blood and all, though people might ask what kind of drug you were on and the response would have to be "Core i" of course. It's a little like crack only it doesn't make you lose your voice. Though you might want to occasionally...
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AMD is celebrating Valentine's Day this year with a new series of Opteron processors that improve overall performance and reduce power consumption. At the high end, AMD's new highest-end 6180 SE 2.8GHz 12-core CPU is a 105W ACP (Average Power Consumption). Up until now, the 6176 SE at 2.3GHz / 105W ACP had been AMD's highest-end processor. What these launches collectively demonstrate is that AMD's 45nm Magny-Cours products are maturing as expected. It's fairly common for a CPU manufacturer to release a 125W high-end processor at launch, only to offer the same chip in a 95W power envelope after the manufacturing process is optimized further. When we asked AMD about the state of its Opteron business...
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Until now, if you wanted something in a six-core from Intel, the 980X was the only flavor of the day. However, we just got in a sample of a new 32nm Gulftown-based Core i7 six-core that is slotted for a somewhat more palatable price point of $885. Clocked at 3.2GHz, the new Core i7 970 will afford you a bit more financial breathing room, if you're hankering for that step up to what is arguably (or perhaps not arguably) the fastest X86 desktop chip architecture around currently. We've got the rest of the speeds, feeds and performance details laid out for you here on the following pages. You want Core i7 six-core goodness? Intel is sweetening the pot just a little...
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There's little question, like the sun rising and setting each day, that when Intel launches their latest top-of-the-line processor, a stinging four-figure price point awaits. It seems like forever that Intel's latest flagship desktop chips drop into the market at anywhere from $999 - $1100 or so at their time of launch. Obviously, for many mainstream users, that's the price of an entire system and monitor and they just don't need all that much CPU horsepower. But for others, the need for speed is insatiable. Either that or their productivity and ultimately profitability, is directly proportional to processor throughput; as is often times the case with folks in the...
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IDC's latest report on CPU revenue and market share for Q1 2010 confirms results we saw when Intel reported its record first quarter earnings. According to the research firm, the CPU market fell just 5.6 percent from Q4 2009 to Q1 2010. Historically, CPU sales fall 8-10 percent over the same period; IDC's figures lend credence to the idea that the IT recession is beginning to break. "PC processor shipments typically decline around 7 to 8 percent going from fourth quarter to first quarter," said Shane Rau director of Semiconductors: Personal Computing research at IDC. "A decline of 5.6% is modest and wouldn't mean much by itself. However, after the huge rise in shipments we saw in the fourth quarter,...
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Intel reported its sales figures for the first quarter of 2010 yesterday, and the company's market position could scarcely be better. Revenue in Q1 was $10.3 billion—a record for the quarter—while sales declined just three percent between Q4 2009 and Q1 2010. Processor shipments typically fall about nine percent during this period; Intel didn't just beat the odds, it trounced them. "The investments we're making in leading edge technology are delivering the most compelling product line-up in our history," said Paul Otellini, Intel president and CEO. "These leadership products combined with growing worldwide demand and continued outstanding execution resulted in Intel's best first quarter ever....
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AMD launched its new Maranello server platform and accompanying 8-12 core Magny-Cours processors today. The new products are two prongs of a three-pronged offensive AMD has launched at its rival. Both Magny-Cours and Maranello are evolutionary products—we'll have to wait for Bulldozer to really shake things up—but the CPU manufacturer has aggressively overhauled and flattened its price structure. That revamp is the third prong and it's the anchor of AMD's 2010-2011 strategy.More Cores, Different SocketMagny-Cours is a twelve-core processor built by stacking two Istanbul chips side-by-side. Unlike previous AMD processors, Magny-Cours is an MCM (multi-chip module), the eight-core version of...
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We've already covered AMD's upcoming Magny-Cours processor and associated Maranello server platform in some detail, but AMD is apparently wanting to build some buzz around its new hardware. Over at his AMD blog, AMD's director of product marketing John Fruehe recently spilled the beans on a 48-core contest. The AMD Server team is kicking March off with a new contest. We are seeking your best essays, videos, or blog posts documenting how you might use 48 cores...Tell us what you can do with 48 cores to make the world a better, more interesting place, delivering the top performance or optimizing power. Of course creativity will be awarded, so don’t be afraid to show the fun side of servers...Here’s...
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In a blog post yesterday, AMD's director of product marketing John Fruehe announced that the company is now shipping its eight and 12-core "Magny-Cours" processors to OEMs and select manufacturers. Magny-Cours, you may recall, is AMD's next-generation server CPU and consists of two Istanbul cores side-by-side on the same package. Since AMD has no native octal-core design, it's implied that the eight-core version of Magny-Cours consists of two Istanbul processors with two cores on each disabled. If Magny-Cours is more-or-less an Istanbulx2, however, the upcoming Maranello platform is something altogether different. Maranello, which uses an LGA-style pinout, supports 16-48 cores, and provides each...
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AMD revealed more information on its first Fusion-class product at ISSCC this week. The new chip will combine both a CPU and GPU on a single package, but don't use either nickname—AMD is calling the new chip an "APU" or Application Processor Unit as part of its bid to shift product focus from the core components in a system to the tasks and workloads a system is capable of handling. Done properly, this could solve certain nomenclature confusions that have plagued the computer market from the very beginning, but we aren't holding our breath. Both AMD and Intel have tackled this type of rebranding before (think AMD Live! and Intel ViiV), with minimal success. For now, however, we'll roll...
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With the International Solid-State Circuits Conference less than a week away, Intel has released additional details on its hexa-core desktop, next generation mobile and dual-core Westmere processors. Much of the dual-core data was revealed last month when the CPU manufacturer launched Clarkdale (our review is here if you want additional information on the CPU and its integrated graphics core). When Intel set its internal goals for what its calling Westmere 6C, the company aimed to boost both core and cache count by 50 percent without increasing the processor's thermal envelope. Towards this end, the new Westmere chips will incorporate additional technologies to reduce the CPU's power consumption...
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At its earnings call last week, Intel detailed its strong 2009 finish after the decidedly uncertain start of the year. The company also gave general forecast information for what it expects in the first quarter of the year and for 2010 in general, and discussed the continuing growth of Atom and its 32nm product ramp. When Intel announced its third-quarter numbers and projected Q4 results last year there was some concern that the company might be overly bullish. As it turns out, this was scarcely an issue—Intel's gross margin of 64.7 percent broke company records. PC revenue, Data Center Group, and "other" Intel Architecture revenue all rose by 10 percent, 21 percent, and 22 percent respectively;...
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It's only been two weeks since Intel debuted its 32nm, Nehalem-based Clarkdale processor, but the CPU manufacturer is already planning to introduce Westmere-derived Xeon processors in the first quarter of 2010. Intel revealed its plans during its quarterly conference call last week and hinted that Nehalem-EX processors will soon see the light of day as well, but neglected to mention exactly when it'll launch the new series of parts. Intel's new CPU+GPU technology; dies shown to scale. The two refreshes, when they drop, will significantly overhaul Intel's current series of server chips. At present, Intel's offerings are a mixture of 45nm Nehalem and Penryn-based parts; the new 32nm Westmere chips...
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Intel is planning to show off a myriad of new products at the Consumer Electronics show taking place in Las Vegas in a few weeks, including a whole family of processes built using the company's advanced 32nm High-K / metal gate manufacturing process. On tap will be a number of mobile parts that feature 32nm processor cores linked to 45nm GPUs on a single chip, in addition to a slew of other products related to 3D content creation, WiMax, MIDs and more. Intel has already outlined some of the planned CES highlights right here. New Intel Processors will be introduced on January 7, 2010 In another post on Intel's website made today, a few documents, pictures and videos have also...
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