As expected, Intel this week announced the Pentium Extreme Edition 955, based on the 65-nanometer Presler design. The Hyper-Threading-enabled dual-core processor runs at 3.46 GHz, uses a 1,066 MHz FSB and brings 4 MB of L2 cache (2 MB per core). The Pentium EE 955, which will only hit stores in mid-January, is paired with the i975X chipset. Intel is set to launch its 900 series, also based on the Presler core, next week.
Japanese NEC announced that it has succeeded in the development of multicore processor technology capable of performing automatic multithreading without the need to adapt software. According to the company, it is based on an automatic compiler, which uses profile information of applications to exploit parallelization patterns. With NEC’s method, a program would run 2.83 times faster on four processors, compared to a single one, while a recompiled software would perform only 1.95 times faster.
Intel and Qinetiq are introducing this week, at the International Electron Devices Meeting, in Washington, a prototype transistor capable of revolutionizing the industry. The main difference in relation to traditional designs it the use of indium antimonide instead of silicon in the transistor’s channel. This, according to the companies, guarantees a tenfold reduction in power consumption and a 50% gain in performance. Chips based on the new transistors, however, will not be available before 2015.
Intel has partnered with more than 40 companies to integrate their products to its upcoming Viiv entertainment PC platform. The group includes Adobe, British Sky, Canal+, Capcom, CyberLink Movielink, Napster, Pinnacle, SK Telecom, Telecom Italia, T-Online, VirginMega, Ubisoft and TiVo. Viiv aims to help users manage and share digital entertainment at home through a platform based on Intel processors and designs. Intel is expected do demonstrate the technology during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), set to take place from January 5 to 8, at Las Vegas.
AMD this week confirmed plans to introduce a quad-core server processor by 2007. The design will gradually be extended to desktops and notebooks. During Tuesday’s analyst conference, AMD CTO Phil Hester explained that the cores will be linked by a revised type of HyperTransport bus and will use the M2 and F sockets expected to arrive early next year. Rival Intel plans to introduce a quad-core Xeon in the first half of 2007.
Sun Microsystems this week announced the UltraSPARC T1, formerly known as Niagara, a processor containing up to eight cores, with each core capable of running four threads. The company is promoting it as an “eco-responsible” product, since it has a maximum power consumption of only 70 watts. The 90-nm 1.2 GHz UltraSPARC T1 will be available before the end of 2005 in Sun Fire servers mainly aimed at Web serving and e-commerce applications.
As expected, Intel has started shipping the Pentium 4 662 (3.6 GHz) and 672 (3.8 GHz), featuring its Virtualization Technology (VT), which creates virtual machines capable of running different operating systems on the same processor. The single-core chips specs are identical to those of the current 660 and 670: 2 MB of L2 cache, 800 MHz FSB, HyperThreading, EM64T and Execute Disable. The 662 costs USD 401, while the 672 sells for USD 605, both in 1,000-unit quantities.
IBM, Sony and Toshiba have released a software developer kit for the Cell processor containing more than 1,000 pages of documentation and extensions for optimizing Linux applications and other features. The Cell, set to appear in Sony’s upcoming PlayStation 3, is based on a 64-bit Power processor and has eight additional synergistic cores capable of massive floating point processing.
A month after releasing its first dual-core Xeon processor, Intel announced that it has started shipping MP varieties, all based on the Paxville core. The 7000 series includes chips running at up to 3 GHz and using a 667 MHz FSB. Early next year, the company will unveil new chipsets and processors supporting 800 MHz FSB. Prices of the new chips range from USD 1,177 and USD 3,157 in 1,000-unit quantities.
