Intel's i7

Intel Corporation unveiled its most advanced desktop processor ever, the Intel Core i7 processor in the country today.

The Core i7 processor is the first member of a new family of Nehalem processor designs and is the most sophisticated ever built, with new technologies that boost performance on demand and maximize data throughput. The Core i7 processor speeds video editing, immersive games and other popular Internet and computer activities by up to 40 percent without increasing power consumption.

"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."

Intel's Turbo Boost Technology accelerates performance to match a computer user's needs and workloads. Through a sophisticated on-die power control unit and using new "power gate" transistors based on Intel's advanced 45 nanometer, high-k metal gate manufacturing process, Turbo Boost automatically adjusts the clock speed of one or more of the four individual processing cores for single- and multi-threaded applications to boost performance, without increasing power consumption.

The Core i7 also has the latest Intel power-saving technologies, allowing desktops to go into sleep states formerly reserved for Intel-based notebooks.

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. Designed with Intel's Hyper-Threading Technology, the processor also allows multiple computing threads to run simultaneously, effectively enabling it to do two things at once. As a result, the Core i7 quad-core processor delivers 8-threaded performance.

The Intel Core i7 processor also offers unrivaled performance for immersive 3-D games - over 40 percent faster than previous Intel high-performance processors on both the 3DMark Vantage CPU physics and AI tests. The Extreme Edition uses 8 threads to run games with advanced artificial intelligence and physics to make games act and feel real.

The Intel Core i7 processors and Intel X58 Express Chipset-based Intel Desktop Board DX58SO Extreme Series are for sale immediately from several computer manufacturers online and in retail stores, as well as a boxed retail product via channel online sales.

The Core i7 processor is the first member of the Intel Nehalem microarchitecture family; server and mobile product versions will be in production later. Each Core i7 processor features 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 customers or hobbyists to further increase the chip's speed.

Intel Unveils New Classmate PCs

Intel Corp. unveiled new features for its line of low-cost laptops for schools Wednesday, adding bigger screens and more data storage capacity as the chip maker ratchets up its rivalry with the One Laptop per Child organization, which sells a competing machine.Intel's new Classmate PCs - slated to go on sale in April for between $300 and $500 - reflect the company's growing efforts to sell computers equipped with its own chips to schools in developing countries, a battleground for technology companies because of the millions of people there just coming online.But the target market has expanded to include kids in the U.S. as potential users of cheaper, stripped-down machines.Classmate PCs also are part of Intel's push to generate interest in a new class of mobile devices the company is calling "netbooks," which are smaller and have fewer functions than standard laptops but also use far less power and are easier to carry around.

Other tweaks to the Classmate that Intel announced Wednesday from its developer forum in Shanghai include the availability of both 7-inch and 9-inch screens, a 30 gigabyte hard disk drive and an integrated Web camera.At the developer forum, Intel executives also rolled out five new processors under the "Atom" brand name. The chips are designed for pocket-size Internet devices. The chips come in speeds up to 1.86 gigahertz while using less than 3 watts of power.Intel said its Classmate PCs will eventually use Atom processors.Classmates are based on Intel's design and include its processors, but they are built by other manufacturers and sold under a variety of brand names. The first generation went on sale in March 2007 with the 7-inch screen and fewer functions. Intel said it has sold "tens of thousands" of the machines but declined to provide more specific data.Intel and OLPC have feuded furiously over their competing products.The Cambridge, Mass.-based nonprofit OLPC says it has sold hundreds of thousands of its $188 machines.The Massachusetts Institute of Technology spinoff's low-cost XO laptop includes a microprocessor from Advanced Micro Devices Inc., the world's No. 2 microprocessor maker behind Intel.A short-lived truce between Intel and OLPC ended earlier this year when Intel suddenly pulled out from OLPC's board of directors.Intel claimed it couldn't continue cooperating with OLPC when founder Nicholas Negroponte demanded Intel stop selling Classmates overseas. Negroponte said the dispute stemmed from Intel sales reps disparaging OLPC products while pushing Intel's own machines.Source

Mobile Quad-Core Processors to be Launched by Intel

Keeping in mind the advent of desktop based quad-core processors in the mainstream, it was just a matter of time before they showed up in a mobile version too. This was confirmed by Digitimes, which goes onto say that Intel will be planning to launch its first quad-core CPU for notebooks, the Core 2 Extreme QX9300, in the third quarter this year. This new processor will be manufactured at 45nm and have a core frequency of 2.53GHz. The CPU will support FSB speeds up to 1066MHz, include 12MB L2 cache and have a maximum TDP of 45W.

While this announcement is good in terms of consumer choice, it raises a number of interesting questions. Despite the low heat dissipation of these processors, they will be a lot more power hungry as compared to standard dual-core processors and this will directly affect battery life. Secondly with such powerful chips, the GPU market will also need to keep pace enabling more realistic gaming on laptops, which is abysmal to say the least at its very best.Source

Intel : Low Power Chips to be called "Atom"

Chipmaker Intel has announced naming (branding) its new family of ultra-small, low-power processors for ultra-mobile PCs (UMPCs) as "Atom".Described by the company as "a fundamental new shift in design, small yet powerful enough to enable a big Internet experience on these new devices," "Atom" joins other Intel brands, including Core, Core 2, Celeron, and Xeon. Intel sees a huge market for UMPCs and other small form factor Internet devices; calling its own version of such a device as 'Netbook', a low-cost PC that would cost in the region of $250.
The "Atom" family of processors is based on a new microarchitecture; meant for smaller devices with lower power consumption, Intel said. A typical "Atom" chip is less than 25 square millimeters, with 11 of the chip's dies (slivers of Silicon with 47 million transistors each) capable of fitting into an area that's less than the size of a US penny. Two of the members of the "Atom" family; previously codenamed 'Silverthorne' and 'Diamondville' have already been discussed at length, and are scheduled to ship towards the middle of this year. Both 'Silverthorne' and 'Diamondville' are based on Intel's 45 nanometer chipmaking technology.'Silverthorne' integrates a new low-power state, enabling it to shut down in between processing tasks, thereby reducing power consumption. Meanwhile, 'Diamondville' is said to sport a design much simpler than that deployed by standard Intel chips.Industry analysts are of the view that 'Diamondville' and 'Silverthorne' represent Intel's attempt at selling chips profitably for a whole lot less. In addition, Intel has also announced the "Centrino Atom" processor technology aimed specially at mobile Internet devices. This was formerly code-named Menlow."Centrino Atom" includes the Intel Atom processor, a low power companion chip with integrated graphics, a wireless radio, as well as thinner and lighter designs. Intel envisages tremendous growth for "Centrino Atom" technology in consumer electronics and other gadgets.Source

Intel Wolfdale: Core 2 Duo E8500, E8400 and E8200 Processors

Not so long ago we thought that in early 2008 we will be focusing on comparing the new AMD Phenom processors against the refreshed Intel Penryn manufactured with 45nm technological process. However, these expectations didn’t come true, and both – AMD and Intel – should be blamed for that.It is true, at this time AMD cannot deliver mass quad-core processors working at competitive frequencies. The currently available Phenom models lose even to previous generation quad-core Intel processors, not to mention the more advanced CPUs. It is quite logical that Intel doesn’t have any significant stimulus to refresh their quad-core processor line-up, because there are simply no worthy competitors to the pretty successful Core 2 Quad on old 65nm cores these days. That is why the launch of new Core 2 Quad processors known as Yorkfield has been postponed for an indefinite period of time, at least until February or March 2008. And although Intel has found an excuse – an alleged problem in the upcoming processors caused by EMI in 1333MHz front side bus when these CPUs are used in hypothetical mainboards with 4-layer PCB design – it doesn’t sound convincing at all.As for us, we have to state to our disappointment that it doesn’t make sense to compare Phenom against Penryn, because the former is uncompetitive, and the latter is still illusive and remains only an upcoming solution for the time being.Nevertheless, there are more than enough interesting topics for discussion in the today’s processor market. Although Intel decided to postpone the launch of their quad-core processors on 45nm cores, the Core 2 Duo processor lineup will be refreshed with a few new models. They are going to announce three new processor models with Wolfdale codename within the next few days. They will be Core 2 Duo E8500, E8400 and E8200. These CPUs are based on the revised core manufactured with 45nm process and belong to the same Penryn family as the postponed Yorkfield CPUs. We certainly can’t disregard the arrival of mass Wolfdale processors, which promise to raise the performance bar for Intel’s dual-core solutions to a totally new qualitative level. They feature higher clock speeds, larger L2 cache and a number of other improvements. And the most pleasing thing about them is their cost, set at the same level as that of older Core 2 Duo solutions.So, in the second half of January 2008 Intel is going to massively update their dual-core processor lineup in $160-$260 price range. This particular event became the main topic of our today’s article that will dwell on the new promising Intel processors and the changes they will bring to the mainstream desktop market.Source

MacBook Pro upgraded to Penryn

Apple today updated its popular MacBook and MacBook Pro notebook lines with the latest Intel Core 2 Duo "Penryn" processors, larger hard drives and 2GB of memory standard in most models. In addition, MacBook Pro includes NVIDIA graphics processors, now with up to 512MB of video memory, and Apple’s Multi-Touch trackpad, first introduced in MacBook Air.The new MacBook Pro features an Intel C2D 2.6 GHz processor with 6MB of shared L2 cache; up to 4GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM memory and up to a 300GB hard drive, plus NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT graphics with up to 512MB of video memory. Every MacBook Pro now includes a trackpad with Multi-Touch gesture support for pinch, rotate and swipe, which allows users to zoom and rotate photos in iPhoto or Aperture 2 or browse web pages in Safari. The laptop also sports an illuminated keyboard that makes it ideal for dimly lit environments such as airplanes, studios or conference halls and a built-in ambient light sensor, which automatically adjusts the brightness of the keys as well as the brightness of the display for optimal visibility.
The new Macbooks now come in three models and include faster processors and larger hard drives across the line; sleek white 2.1 GHz and 2.4 GHz models with 120GB or 160GB 5400 rpm hard drives and a black 2.4 GHz model with a 250GB 5400 rpm hard drive, previously only available as an option. The 2.4 GHz MacBook models ship with 2GB of memory standard, expandable up to 4GB across the line. The LCD panel common to all these 3 laptops is a 13-inch glossy widescreen display,
Apart from these changes, Every MacBook and MacBook Pro includes a built-in iSight video camera for video conferencing on-the-go; Apple’s MagSafe Power Adapter that magnetically connects the power cord and safely disconnects when under strain; the latest generation of 802.11n wireless networking for up to five times the performance and twice the range of 802.11g; built-in 10/100/1000 BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet for high-speed networking; Bluetooth; analog and digital audio inputs and outputs; USB 2.0; FireWire and a built-in Super Drive. Source

"Centrino 2" to be introduced by Intel in June

Intel is all set to launch its fifth-generation 'Montevina' processor coming June. The new mobile platform processor will be branded as "Centrino 2" when announced at the Computex Taipei 2008 Conference (June 3-7, 2008).
Along with the "Centrino 2" platform, Intel will launch six 45nm notebook CPUs, all with a 1066MHz FSB (Front Side Bus) and core speeds ranging between 2.26GHz and 3.06GHz.
"Centrino 2" is Intel's newest revision of its 'Centrino' mobile platform processor. 'Centrino' has had four generations prior to this --- Carmel, Sonoma, Napa, and Santa Rosa.
The reason why Intel is adopting the brand name "Centrino 2" and not 'Montevina' is because they reckon consumers have had difficulty in understanding considerable improvements in various 'Centrino' processor generations. Intel believes its new marketing strategy will help boost sales as the suffix "2" represents a significant upgradation for consumers to comprehend.
Meanwhile, the six 45nm notebook CPUs are expected to be priced between $209 and $851 per 1000-unit tray quantities.
After the "Centrino 2" launch during the second quarter this year, the third quarter will bring seven 45nm SFF (Small Form Factor) notebook CPUs from Intel. These will be similar to those used in Apple's MacBook Air, and other soon-to-be-seen ultra-portable notebooks.
According to Digitimes.com, Intel has shipped over 100 million notebook CPUs in 2007. Shipments are expected to increase to 123 million units by the end of this year.Source: Techtree

Mac Book Air launched in INDIA

Apple today unveiled what's claimed to be the world's thinnest notebook, the MacBook Air, in India.

Angeline Tan, product marketing manager of Apple, introduced the notebook here, which measures 4 mm at its thinnest point.

The MacBook Air was first launched at the MacWorld expo in San Francisco on January 15.

In India, it will ship in two weeks through Apple authorized resellers and dealers for a suggested retail price of Rs 96,100 ($2,421).

The features of the MacBook Air include a 13.3-inch liquid crystal display, a full-size backlit keyboard and a built-in video camera.

MacBook Air delivers up to five hours of battery life and includes Wi-Fi networking.

With an Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 1.6 or 1.8 GHz of processing power, Apple's standard model contains a 1.8-inch hard drive offering 80GB of storage.

Source: Tech 2