Intel Desktop CPU Lineup for 2009 Split Wide Open

[btarunr]

Intentional or not, a huge set of company-confidential diagrams from Intel have surfaced from Japanese website PC Watch. The diagrams show Intel's roadmap until the beginning of 2010. While the authenticity of these diagrams are questionable, and there are bound to be inaccuracies, they provide a broad view of Intel's consumer PC processor plans. The first time shows a gradual transition between the current Core and upcoming Nehalem architectures. What's more, it shows how Intel may have segregated the desktop PC market, with six main product divisions from bottom to top being integrated board, value, essential, mainstream, performance and extreme. The value, mainstream and performance segments are further classified on price-bands.



The contents of the diagram are pretty self explanatory in terms of what kind of products are slated for when and a little peak into what they are made of. Highlights of the diagram include:

• Demotion of Core 2 Quad Q9550 to Mainstream. It leads the mainstream segment. This follows a significant price cut after the entry of Q9650.
• Core 2 Quad Q9400 enters the sub-segment of high-Mainstream.
• There are variations in the QuickPath interconnect bandwidth between the Core i7 2.66 GHz, 2.93 GHz parts with that of the extreme segment 3.20 GHz model. The extreme segmant Core i7 seems to have a higher bandwidth QPI system interface.
• Lynnfield is on course, slated for Q3 2009.
• Two 3.xx GHz dual-core Havendale parts will take seats along with Lynnfied, definitively with 4 MB caches. One of them gets into high-Mainstream sub category.
• Havendale parts make it even to essential and value classes with the low-end value parts continuing to be based on Core architecture till a little longer.
• A six-core Nehalem part code-named Westmere comes out in 2010.

As you can see, that's quite a huge fleet ready for tomorrow's market. Intel has a processor to sell you in every price-band, any every level of performance. There is however an inaccuracy in that graph, two Havendale parts feature above the thick blue dual-quad core demarcation line. Atom's future looks quite exciting as well (covered here). A quick round-up of the processors' schematics is provided in this rather large image:



For more pictures and a detailed explanation, visit this translated page. The year 2009 looks the the year of upgrades for the computer enthusiast community.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site

 

[alexp999]

Wow, some great info there. Though i would have expected 32nm or similar (or lower) by the oct-core. 130W TDP is quite a bit for a stock chip. I think companies need to start working on getting their chips more effecient. GPU MF's included.

Oh and grats on becoming a news editor bta!

 

[Morgoth]

cant wait to get my hand on it

 

[jpierce55]

Wow, some great info there. Though i would have expected 32nm or similar (or lower) by the oct-core. 130W TDP is quite a bit for a stock chip. I think companies need to start working on getting their chips more effecient. GPU MF's included.

Oh and grats on becoming a news editor bta!

More power efficient and cooler vs. performance would be nice.... I want more power but I hate how hot this pc makes the room when its on.

 

[nflesher87]

looks a bit lackluster to me

 

[btarunr]

Wow, some great info there. Though i would have expected 32nm or similar (or lower) by the oct-core. 130W TDP is quite a bit for a stock chip. I think companies need to start working on getting their chips more effecient. GPU MF's included.

If you're talking about Bloomfield, you're missing a crucial point. The added TDP is because of a beefy L3 cache, 192bit memory controller and the QPI interface. So a great chunk of machinery from the northbridge is now on the CPU. I find this TDP rather low, compared to say a QX9650 + X48 (mem ctrlr) combined draw. Both i7 Extreme 3.00 GHz and C2 Extreme QX9650 have the same rated TDP? Which is more efficient now?

 

[alexp999]

If you're talking about Bloomfield, you're missing a crucial point. The added TDP is because of a beefy L3 cache, 192bit memory controller and the QPI interface. So a great chunk of machinery from the northbridge is now on the CPU. I find this TDP rather low, compared to say a QX9650 + X48 (mem ctrlr) combined draw. Both i7 Extreme 3.00 GHz and C2 Extreme QX9650 have the same rated TDP? Which is more efficient now?

Yeah true, forgot it had built in MCH.
Guess the NB wont use as much power then. Wonder if the next step is to have no NB and SB, and have one (literal) central processing unit.

 

[btarunr]

NB Doesn't. In fact Smackover uses a rather puny NB heatsink. The X58 runs very cool. So it's rather misleading if someone like say MSI or Gigabyte cools X58 using some Frankenstein heatpipe array and uses it as a PR gimmick.

Until now NB cooling was of importance since upping the NB voltage affected memory OC. Now the IMC takes care of that. For Bloomfield, the X58 is just a beefy PCI-E switch that connects the CPU to the PCI-E devices and the SB (ICH10R). Not much of tuning except maybe PCI-E base clock frequency, no practicality of a ZOMG cooler.

 

[KBD]

whats the deal with quick path interconnect, what does it do?

 

[Morgoth]

same thing as front side bus/ hypertransport

 

[Hayder_Master]

i am was watting respond from intel when amd say something about new phenom's

 

[DaedalusHelios]

In the diagram the 4core/2core boundary is in the wrong place. It makes me wonder if the diagram was simply made by an outsider etc.