Intel to pay AMD $1.25B!!!!!!!!!!!

[randomizer]

Why would it? It's not a radical architecture change by any means.

 

[jennyh]

I know, it's just power improvements.

The gap will widen a touch, but nothing major like I think some intel fanboys are dreaming of.

i9 > Thuban > i7, thats what 2010 will be. AMD will do well in budget with ludicrously cheap Athlon X6's - that is what i'm looking forward to.

 

[ElMoIsEviL]

Maybe they should be shoving those awesome nehalems into the top 5 supercomputers then? Oh wait...

It's funny you should say that. That is coming far sooner than you think. Intel is just about ready to release their 4 and 8-way configurations (starting with Beckton). Major OEMs already have working boards (both HP and Dell).

2010 is a good year for AMD. They have been through this before in the past. So intel move to 32nm - did yorkfield really own kentsfield so much that anyone noticed? The millions of Q6600's still sitting in most people's pc's says 'no'.

That's a hard comment to tackle because of the way it is structured. Was the Q6600 a hugely successful CPU? Yes. In fact it has a brother in the Core i7 920 (the other hugely successful Intel processor as of late). Both overclock quite well.

That having been said, the other part of your comment regarding Kentsfield just doesn't jive as Kentsfield based processors also enjoyed a lot of success (look at people's sigs in various forums or simply look at the OEM design wins from Dell and HP with the Q9550).

This time, however, the move to 32nm will also bring a 6-core (12 thread) CPU into the mix (at the high end but I'm willing to bet it will be a hit with enthusiasts). When you hold the performance crown, there is an aura or a halo effect that trickles down your entire product line making it all look technologically advanced, interesting, shiny and new. This is the reason why ATi and nVIDIA are always at their throats to win the top coveted spot.

AMD doesn't have that halo right now with their CPUs... so for most of us... their products just look bleh right now (they have their uses just as the Prescott did but those are far and few in between). AMD obviously know this so they're competing on price (and on that front they're relatively successful).

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

This is the last year for cpu only, so it hardly matters

 

[ElMoIsEviL]

I know, it's just power improvements.

The gap will widen a touch, but nothing major like I think some intel fanboys are dreaming of.

i9 > Thuban > i7, thats what 2010 will be. AMD will do well in budget with ludicrously cheap Athlon X6's - that is what i'm looking forward to.

I don't know that Thuban will beat i7. In fact it takes an AMD Quad CPU relatively high clocks just to match a Core 2 Quad (let alone an i7). Thuban will likely be clocked lower than current Phenom II X4s, add it all together and I just don't see Thuban beating i7.

In games, more cores generally means nothing and this is the one area where AMD can create an illusion of competition (due to factors we have gone over quite often).

I see it as i9 > i7 > i5 >=< Thuban > Phenom II > Core 2 Quad based on released products and clock speeds and supposed clock speeds of unreleased products but if I factor in performance per clock...

i9 > i7 > i5 >=< Thuban > Core 2 Quad > Phenom II>

 

[jennyh]

Thuban will come in at 2.8 and 3ghz, same as Deneb did. And yes, it will be faster than any i7 available now.

Magny cours will crush Gulftown a few months later. Intel is back to playing catchup there.

 

[ElMoIsEviL]

Thuban will come in at 2.8 and 3ghz, same as Deneb did. And yes, it will be faster than any i7 available now.

Magny cours will crush Gulftown a few months later. Intel is back to playing catchup there.

What feature in Thuban will magically make its IPC skyrocket? (not talking about Cores just IPC).

As you're probably aware a Core i7 (Xeon @ 2.93GHz) trounces an Istanbul processor (at 2.6GHz) so what about Thuban is different?

2.8-3GHz seems hardly high enough to make a dent in the i7s performance lead.

http://www.anandtech.com/IT/showdoc.aspx?i=3571&p=5

 

[randomizer]

I'd hope that Magny Cours beats Gulftown. 12 cores against 6 cores with HT? I don't want to hear the Intel fanboys laughing the house down if it falls flat on its face. We'd have to call it Courslite

 

[BadTrip]

pure speculation Jenny

 

[BadTrip]

I'd hope that Magny Cours beats Gulftown. 12 cores against 6 cores with HT? I don't want to hear the Intel fanboys laughing the house down if it falls flat on its face. We'd have to call it Courslite

LMAO

 

[jennyh]

And the reason why AMD are giving intel a hiding in the Top500 supercomputers is....?

I mean come on - if that was the case then why does AMD have the top 4 supercomputers with Istanbul?

 

[BadTrip]

did you not just read? Wait until the 4 way and 8 way i7s are out

 

[ElMoIsEviL]

I'd hope that Magny Cours beats Gulftown. 12 cores against 6 cores with HT? I don't want to hear the Intel fanboys laughing the house down if it falls flat on its face. We'd have to call it Courslite

HAHAHA Courslite... sorry that was funny.

Well this is what I got from Thuban:

Confirmed by AMD in September, the Thuban hexa-core desktop processor seems to have had its release date brought forward, with the latest reports saying that the chip will hit stores in Q2 (2010) and not Q3 as previously thought.

Thuban, which will probably be known as Phenom II X6, features and AM3 packaging, is built on 45nm technology, has six cores and an integrated memory controller, 3MB (512kB per core) L2 and 6MB of (shared) L3 cache, and is said to start off clocked at 2.8 GHz. Currently AMD's quad-cores have reached 3.4 GHz (Phenom II X4 965 BE) but the hexa-core has to settle for less in order to keep the TDP in check (at 140W tops). No word on Thuban's pricing just yet but there's time for a leak about that too.

So it won't even debut at 3GHz, only 2.8GHz and in the Q2 2010 time frame. Doesn't seem like it's really going to make a dent at all.

Like we've all been saying. AMDs chance will only come with Bulldozer. Before Bulldozer arrives AMD is dead in the water.

This does beg the question... why would you need 6 Cores Jenny? I thought "value" processors and Quad Cores were more than enough?

 

[randomizer]

@jenny: Because Gulftown isn't out yet

 

[jennyh]

What makes you think that AMD won't release a 'value' 6-core in 2010?

AMD dead in the water? Lol...you sure do have a surprise coming. 😀

 

[ElMoIsEviL]

And the reason why AMD are giving intel a hiding in the Top500 supercomputers is....?

I mean come on - if that was the case then why does AMD have the top 4 supercomputers with Istanbul?

I answered that a few posts above:

It's funny you should say that. That is coming far sooner than you think. Intel is just about ready to release their 4 and 8-way configurations (starting with Beckton). Major OEMs already have working boards (both HP and Dell).

Intel doesn't have a 4P or 8P config out yet for Xeon. It's due out Q4 2009/Q1 2010.

 

[jennyh]

@jenny: Because Gulftown isn't out yet

YES 😀

I get to throw back the old 'future chip' argument right at ya.

 

[ElMoIsEviL]

What makes you think that AMD won't release a 'value' 6-core in 2010?

AMD dead in the water? Lol...you sure do have a surprise coming. 😀

A surprised based on what?

A 6-Core processor has already been released by AMD using the Shanghai core (Istanbul). What new feature will Thuban have that will boost it's performance per clk?

I understand that it will have Dual Channel DDR3 1333MHz support and that's it.

What are you basing this "surprise" on?

(And please don't say a "gut" feeling). George W. Bush had many of those and we all know how well those panned out 😛

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

First off, reducing cache, using the new stepping and raising the HT will make for better clocks, better IPC and better power consumption.
How well all this transforms into a decent chip remains to be seen

 

[jennyh]

You do know Magny Cours is due Q1 btw?

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

No halo part coming soon, but good and competitive, yes, hitting decent price points as well

 

[randomizer]

YES 😀

I get to throw back the old 'future chip' argument right at ya.

You could have used the same argument before Thuban came out. There's always a bigger fish... I mean better chip.

 

[ElMoIsEviL]

First off, reducing cache, using the new stepping and raising the HT will make for better clocks, better IPC and better power consumption.
How well all this transforms into a decent chip remains to be seen

How does cache reduction increase IPC?

Raising the HT migh help but Istanbul already have models using HT3 and they fare no better.

Higher clocks doesn't mean higher IPC.

Power consumption might be better though.

 

[JAYDEEJOHN]

I left it to your good knowledge to fit it where its sposed to go my good Elmo.
Also, Thuban is NOT Istanbul, by any margin

 

[jennyh]

Tbh, I think the intel fanboys are absolutely terrified of Bulldozer.

They probably should be...but AMD aren't just gonna roll over and take it in 2010. Ever since the abortion that was Phenom I, AMD have hit every target with months to spare.

There are surprises coming - nothing that is going to completely change anything in 2010, but nothing that is going to increase intels advantage either. It's all about closing the gap that little bit more until 2011.