Register Hardware

Original URL: http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/02/02/intel_45nm_desktops_until_q1_08/

Intel won't launch 45nm desktop CPUs until 2008?

By Tony Smith
Published Friday 2nd February 2007 10:37 GMT

Intel may claim its 45nm processors will be in production in H2 (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/01/27/intel_reveals_penryn/), but it appears desktop chips may not actually launch until Q1 2008, if the latest roadmap to leak out of the chip giant is to be believed.

Intel has two 45nm CPUs in the pipeline: 'Yorkfield', the sucessor to today's four-core Core 2 Extreme and Core 2 Quad, and 'Wolfdale', the future Core 2 Duo. According to a roadmap published (http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2007/0202/kaigai333.htm?www.reghardware.co.uk) by Japanese-language site PCWatch, all both chips do not appear until Q1 2008.

Yorkfield and Wolfdale (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/01/05/intel_wolfdale_yorkfield_roadmap/) are derived from 'Penryn', Intel's 45nm Core 2 architecture. It's not only a die-shrink of the 65nm 'Conroe', but incorporates a variety of architectural tweaks and introduces SSE4 instructions (http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2006/09/27/intel_x86_isa_extensions/). It's also been suggested the chip re-enables HyperThreading, missing from Intel's main desktop processors since the Pentium era.

The roadmap has Yorkfield down as the basis for the 2.4GHz Core 2 Quad Q6600, the same model number as the current, 65nm version. We'd expect at least a small increase in model number, to reflect the presence of SSE4. Intel has said it will detail 45nm product specifics later in the year, so it's possible it's simply not including such details on the roadmap yet.

Likewise, the Wolfdale Core 2 Duo is the 2.66GHz E6750, a part due to ship in 65nm form in Q3 2007. Q3 will also see the arrival of the 2.13GHz Core 2 Quad Q6400, which is also due for a Yorkfield incarnation in Q1 2008, the report claims.

None of this is inconsistent with Intel's public pronouncements, which have stated production of the parts will take place in H2 2007, a timeframe which allows the chip giant not to begin volume production until 23:59pm on 31 December 2007 ready for Q1 2008 shipment.