MAMAMAXIMXIMXIMXIMUUUUMMPPPCC HOLIDAY 2007
T
he year 2007 was all about Intel.
Intel’s Core 2—both the dual- and
quad-core versions—dominated
AMD’s aged offerings. What’s more,
Intel’s prized chips feature 64-bit com-
puting, something AMD once proudly
laid claim to via the “64” in its Athlon
series; the tag has since been dropped
now that the distinction is moot.HERE’S INTEL’S STORY
In the coming year, Intel intends to turn
the screws on AMD with a die-shrink/
performance-enhanced CPU code-
named Penryn. Penryn uses Intel’s new
45nm process, which includes high-k
metal gate silicon technology, touted
by Intel as “the biggest breakthrough
in 40 years.” In non-PR terms, high-k
basically decreases power leakage,
offers greater energy effi ciency, and
has the potential to increase transis-
tor switching speed. So expect faster,
cooler, and less-power-hungry CPUs.
Penryn-class CPUs will follow the
same dynamic as Conroe (Core 2Duo) and Kentsfi eld (Core 2 Quad):
Each die will be a dual-core processor
(desktop code-name Wolfdale), with a
quad-core comprising two Wolfdales
beneath a unifi ed heat spreader (desk-
top code-name Yorkfi eld).Each Wolfdale will feature 6MB of
L2 cache and 410 million transistors.
Yorkfi eld doubles those numbers.
Penryn isn’t just a die-shrink, though;
Intel has also tinkered with the core
to greatly increase division math,
pump up virtualization performance,
and include a new SSE4 instruction
set aimed at video encoding. And
the chip is well underway. We drove
Penryn for our July issue, and it was
fast. Of course, we will reserve offi cial
judgment until we test shipping parts,
but we expect Penryn to be anywhere
from 10 to 100 percent faster than the
current quad cores.
The fi rst Penryn for consumers
will be the Core 2 Extreme QX
and will run at 3GHz on a 1,333MHz
front-side bus. The chip should just
become available as you read this,
with volume shipments of mainstream
speeds early next year.AMD’S PLAN UNVEILED
Not much has changed for AMD since
we wrote last year’s
tech preview, except
the company has
dubbed its still-
upcoming quad
core Phenom (pro-
nounced fee -nom).
Phenom will be
based on the com-
pany’s 65nm pro-
cess and be “native
quad core,” which
is AMD-speak for
one single, contigu-
ous piece of silicon
containing all four
cores. The advan-
tage of this design
is that each CPU core can communi-
cate with the others at much higher
speeds than Intel’s cores. In Intel’s
design, communication between the
discrete pieces of silicon is limited to
the speed of the 1,333MHz front-sidebus. AMD’s design, however, should
really pay off in multi-CPU confi gura-
tions, such as its upcoming FASN8.
A sequel to the company’s Quad FX
platform, FASN8 will populate two
quad-core Phenom FX processors
in a single machine for super-multi-
threading performance.
Intel’s response is that it sees no
reason to build a large, chunky die
connecting all four cores when per-
formance on its CPUs is good without
taking such a path. Intel also points to
the manufacturing advantages of its
dual-dual core approach. Today, it can
use the same silicon for dual or quad
cores and vary the pricing based on
demand. Intel’s approach also yields
more working CPUs since the com-
pany can manufacture its quad cores
using two different pieces of silicon.
Intel can manufacture four-leaf clovers
by connecting a pair of far more prev-
alent two-leaf clovers, while AMD has
to hunt for the four-leaf variety. OK,
hitting on a quad core isn’t quite that
rare, but managing the larger native
quad-core chip has proven to be an
issue for AMD.
How will Phenom perform? The
company continues to express confi -
dence that Phenom will be competi-
tive with Intel’s fastest parts, but insid-
ers are concerned that the late-to-
the-party Phenom FX will face off not
against Kentsfi eld, but rather the next-
gen Yorkfi eld part from Intel. Phenom
is expected to make its splashdown
very late this year and not begin ship-
ping in volume until 2008.quad-core cPUS
It’s been a long time coming, but the quad-core war between AMD and Intel should be in full swing by
early next year—and we can’t wait!TECH
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VIEW