Intel unveils new Quad-core chips…promises 10-20 core chips by 2010
Posted by Lab Rat
Intel announced yesterday that Cloverton, their four-core processor will begin shipping by year’s end. This high performance chip is expected to appear in dual-processor servers, meaning these power houses will be effectively running eight processors. A version of the chip named Tigerton (coincidence? 🙂 ), meant for systems with four or more processors, is expected to ship early 2007.
While this announcement may not directly affect the average Mac user for a couple of years (except possibly for xServe clients) the news of Intel’s focus on multiplying the number of cores per chip going forward is very exciting, and allows for the mind to dream of ludicrously powerful computers just a few years down the road.
Intel claims that by the end of this decade, it plans to ship chips with “tens of cores�, and chips with 100’s of cores will eventually be possible. Intel’s CTO Justin Rattner claims the main advantage to adding cores to chips is “you get an automatic improvement in available bandwidth� while cutting down energy consumption.
Intel’s Conroe and Merom chips, widely expected to be used in upcoming Apple systems, will be dual-core only.
Ok, great.
Now let’s see how many people start with the “Good thing I didn’t buy a new Intel iMac yet. I am waiting for the 25-core one in 2009.”
Still, that 25-core iMac will be sweet…
maybe I’ll hold off on purchasing a new one for a little longer….
I’m glad i didn’t get the intel iMac because of the rumored video problems.
I never used to be one for waiting until rev B or C of a product, but this seemd like a big transition with more room for error.