Event Coverage

IDF Fall 2006 Update (Part 2)

By Dr. Jimmy Tang - 30 Sep 2006

Quad-Core Comes to Xeon Line-up

Quad-Core Comes to Xeon Line-up

Intel continued its quad-core momentum in the enterprise space with the announcement of their new Intel Xeon 5300 series of processors, formerly codenamed Clovertown. Similar to the desktop counterpart, the new Xeon 5300 series will be manufactured using two dual-core dies mounted on a single chip package.

Representing the industry's first quad-core x86 server processor, the Intel Xeon 5300 series of processors are designed for any 2-way standard high-volume server platform. Intel senior vice president and general manager of the Digital Enterprise Group, Pat Gelsinger, demonstrated how its enterprise customers could easily replace their current Woodcrest processors with Clovertown using the current Bensley platform. This provides its customers a lot of flexibility to upgrade their current server platforms with quad-core processors and its OEMs can continue to ship current motherboards and chassis without the need for a complete redesign.

The new quad-core Intel Xeon 5300 series of processors will feature the same socket (LGA771) and its mainstream parts will have the same thermal envelope (80W) as the previous 5100 series. Intel expects to ship these processors in the same time frame as Kentsfield and will be available at bus speeds from 1066MHz to 1333MHz. The new Intel Xeon 5300 series will offer breakthrough performance with up to 50% better performance than the previous 5100 series.

Intel also revealed that a low power version of the Xeon 5300 series at a 50W thermal design point will be launched. Slated at the first quarter of 2007, the quad-core Intel Xeon L5310 processor will be ideal for high density server deployments. It will feature a 1066MHz bus speed.

For the uni-processor market, Intel will also fill that segment with a quad-core offering with the Intel Xeon 3200 series. It is also slated for Q1 of 2007.

Looking further into the roadmap, it seems that quad-core Xeon MP processor will only be available some time later in 2007 with the introduction Tigerton and the Caneland platform.

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