Processors - Page 102

AMD is launching a completely new offensive against Intel in just two weeks time, with a 'confirmed' launch of February 28 for Ryzen - and the cementing of that insanely cheap pricing that we've been hearing about for months.

AMD will reportedly launch Ryzen with an onslaught of SKUs, with the flagship Ryzen 7 1800X and its 8C/16T goodness at up to 4GHz+ with XFR at just $499. This CPU will have the multi-threaded performance of Intel's Core i7-6900K, which costs $1000+ and the gaming performance of a high-end Core i5/i7 CPU.

Belgian online retailer centralpoint.be has listed pricing for the Ryzen 7 1800X, 1700X and 1700 - priced at $499, $389, and $319 respectively. The 1700X will feature 8C/16T at up to 3.8GHz for $389, while the Ryzen 7 1700 offers the same 8C/16T with a 65W TDP (95W on the 1800X and 1700X) while the clocks are reduced to 3.7GHz through Turbo, priced at $319.

AMD will own the 16-threaded consumer CPU market within the next 6-12 months, but Intel is still fighting the good fight in the Xeon area with the introduction of the new Broadwell-EX XCC (Extreme Core Count) die that features 24C/48T of CPU processing power.

Intel's new Xeon E7-8894 v4 features 24 CPU cores with 48 threads in total thanks to Hyper-Threading, as well as a huge 60MB of L3 cache, 165W TDP, and default clocks of 2.4GHz and Turbo clocks of 3.4GHz. But it's the massive price that will have you worried: $8898... yeah, that's right - nearly $10K.

But don't worry, if you want to shave off 200Mhz there's the Xeon E7-8890 v4 which has identical specs - except its default frequency is just 2.2GHz (down from 2.4GHz) and Intel sells that for $7147. This represents a 24% increase in price, for a 9% increase in stock frequency - worth it? Yeah, nah.

AMD is mere weeks away from launching its new offensive on the CPU market, with Ryzen leaks coming daily now - and here we are, with the pricing, specs, clocks, and more on AMD's upcoming Ryzen CPUs.

We know that Ryzen will be led by the R7 1800X flagship CPU, with the rumored price of $499 from last year reportedly sticking - the $499 processor will offer a base frequency of 3.6GHz, while it will boost up to 4GHz under Turbo, and 4GHz+ with better cooling.

The new leaks are courtesy of an internal product list from a Chinese retailer, with the R7 1800X priced at a hot-damn-is-it-too-good-to-be-true $499, while the R7 1700X is $110 cheaper at $389 - dropping its overclocking abilities slightly, but the $319 processor in the R7 1700 is going to be a BEAST... 3GHz+ with 3.7GHz offered under Turbo, and the same 8C/16T configuration.

AMD is weeks away from launching its next-gen Ryzen processors, and now we're finally seeing some synthetic benchmarks on the new CPU - and while this is still a qualifications sample, the results shouldn't be too far away from what we will see from the retail CPUs.

In the leaked benchmarks, the R7 1700X is clocked at 3.4GHz with Turbo mode disabled - meaning results should be higher than this when in the hands of gamers and consumers. The Ryzen 7 1700X was tested on an entry-level MSI A320 motherboard, with relaxed memory timings of 17-17-17-39 2T @ 2400MHz.

As you can see from the results, AMD has quite the winner on its hands with the R7 1700X, which should be priced at just $389 - easily beating or tying with Intel's current mainstream champion: the Core i7-7700K.

Intel has just teased its next-gen Core i3/i5/i7-8000 series processors, and we know that AMD will release its new Ryzen CPUs led by the R7 1800X in just a few weeks time.

Now we're seeing some preliminary pricing on the higher-end Ryzen CPUs, with pricing leaked by shopblt.com, the same retailer that has listed AMD's previous CPUs with good accuracy. I've rounded up the prices, which is where we could expect them to fall when they're announced in the next couple of weeks.

Remember that all of these processors are 8C/16 threads, which means they'll offer multi-threaded performance close to what Intel provides for $1000+ with its Core i7-6900K, and gaming performance in the range of the Core i7-6700K/7700K processors.

As I've said in previous articles, Intel is scared of AMD for the first time in a very long time - and now we have even more proof: Intel has already started teasing their next generation Core i7-8000 series processors, led by what I'm sure will turn out to be the Core i7-8700K.

Intel's next shift into the 14nm+ and new architecure will provide a 15% increase over the current generation Core i7-7000 series CPUs, and they should be branded as the Core i3/i5/i7-8000 series, to better fight Ryzen and its flagship R7 1800X processor - and the refreshed Ryzen CPUs that I'm sure we'll see later this year and early 2018.

Intel is planning to launch its new 8000-series processors in the second half of 2017, so we should expect some news about the new CPUs during Computex 2017 in June. Intel is already set to reveal two new CPUs to better fight AMD and its upcoming Ryzen processors, but the news of the Core i7-8000 series is a little surprising... especially this early in the game.

Intel has just announced a massive $7 billion investment to create the "most advanced semiconductor factory in the world" on United States soil.

Intel CEO Brian Krzanich announced the new investment alongside U.S. President Donald Trump, and the deal is expected to be a boon for Intel as well as the United States. Intel's new facility will be called Fab 42, and will push Moore's Law even further by making 7nm chips and processors.

Fab 42 will take three to four years to complete and will create more than 3,000 high-wage jobs for engineers and technicians as well as 10,000 long-term jobs in the facility's central location in Chandler, Arizona. Apart from the benefits provided by President Trump's business incentives, Fab 42 was built to "help the U.S. maintain its position as the global leader in the semiconductor industry."

AMD is close to the release of their Ryzen processors, with 17 chips expected to be unveiled in the Ryzen family from the R3, R5, and R7 processors.

Now we're seeing some preliminary pricing on the R7 1800X at around 600 EUR or $641, the Ryzen R7 1700X at 470 EUR or $502, and the 8C/16T chip in the R7 1700 priced at 390 EUR - or $416. We could see these prices slightly higher, and I think a $699 price will be applied to the flagship R7 1800X processor, personally.

As for the launch, it's being said it'll happen late February, with a retail launch of March 2. My industry sources say that the chips will be hitting 4.2-4.3GHz maximum when overclocked, while LN2 overclockers should hit 5GHz easily.

Intel's current Core i7-7700K processor is a beast on its own, but at 7.2GHz? That's another story, something that German overclocker 'der8auer' has hit, using liquid helium.

The overclocking milestone for the 7700K was reached at the ASUS Absolute Zero event, and overclocking event that saw Der8auer pushing the CPU to 7.2GHz using liquid helium cooling. Liquid helium is impressive, as it sits at an insanely cold -296C (around 70C lower than liquid nitrogen).

Liquid helium cooling is more expensive than LN2, but it does go 70C lower than LN2. Are we looking at the next level of overclockers using liquid helium, which costs around $4300 for 33oz of the super-cool stuff.

AMD is preparing an onslaught of 17 processors in its Ryzen family, and while I personally think Intel will be dropping prices on their CPUs as they're - for the first time in years - preparing for big competition in the consumer CPU game.

Intel is reportedly preparing two new Kaby Lake CPUs in the form of the Core i7-7740K and Core i5-7640K, which will both rock higher clock speeds, but also a higher TDP. The Core i7-7740K will 'replace' the Core i7-7700K (because it's been so long since it was released) and will feature the same 4C/8T goodness from the Kaby Lake architecture, on the 14nm+ process node.

The purported Core i7-7740K will have a 4.3GHz base clock speed, while boosting up to 4.5GHz - it'll also have 8MB of L3 cache, and a 112W TDP.

AMD is going to completely own the CPU game with its Ryzen processors, offering some nice technology features that even Intel doesn't have on their flagship processors - but Intel is preparing for a new deep neural network aimed CPU architecture, known as Lake Crest.

Lake Crest have been made with DNN (Deep Neural Network) workloads in mind, so it will better compete against the GPU-based offerings from AMD and NVIDIA.

Intel acquired deep learning startup Nervana for $350 million last year, so the catalyst of this partnership is the new Lake Crest architecture. Intel's VP Datacenter Group and GM for AI solutions, Naveen Rao explains: "We have developed the Nervana hardware especially with regard to deep learning workloads. In this area, two operations are often used: matrix multiplication and convolution".

The first reports of Intel using AMD's own Radeon graphics technology inside of one of their processors, we haven't been able to stop to think about the possibilities of Intel using AMD's GPU tech, and if they did - when would it happen.

Now it looks like Intel will be making a processors sometime this year with Radeon GPU technology, based on Intel's current Kaby Lake architecture. The news is coming from HardOCP boss Kyle Bennett, who has said Intel's new processor would be a multi-chip module (MCM) with a Radeon GPU die that is separate to the CPU die, and won't be on-die like Intel's current GPU tech.

Intel's upcoming Radeon-powered Kaby Lake CPU would be a mid-range part, so we could expect something in the 1080p 60FPS region for maybe $249? What do you think about pricing?

AMD is only weeks away from launching their next-gen Ryzen CPUs, and now we're hearing that there will be a massive lineup of new processors, with 17 chips in total. This is good news, rolling in off the back of AMD's impressive quarterly financial report.

We know that AMD is preparing a Ryzen CPU with 8 cores and 16 threads, at 4GHz - but we haven't known the model of this processor... until now. AMD will reportedly don the R7, R5, and R3 series of SKUs - with the flagship AMD R7 1800X processor 8C/16T, with the performance to reach the Core i7-6900K (which goes for $1037 on Amazon right now). We've been hearing about performance on the purported R7 1800X for a while now, but it seems like we can expect the X series models to be the "Black Edition" processors, primed for the enthusiasts.

AMD will have 5 processors in the Ryzen R7 family, which all feature 8C/16T of Zen goodness - led by the R7 1800X, and joined by the R7 PRO 1800, R7 1700X, R7 1700, and R7 PRO 1700. AMD will have its mid-range R5 series, which will come in 6C/12T variants, while the R3 will compete against Intel's new Pentium and Core i3 processors with 4C/4T.

AMD is poised to change the entire PC market with its Ryzen processors launching next month, leaving a once super confident Intel in its silicon dust - but Intel is firing back, confident that it can sustain the fumes of Ryzen with its upcoming Cannonlake architecture.

During a chat with Deutsche Bank Securities, Intel boss Brian Krzanich was asked about the company "That's very helpful. I guess as my follow-up, you talked about the ASPs in answering a prior question. I wondered about the competitive intensity in the PC market. You're taking a more conservative tack than the third-party vendors are forecasting, but your primary x86 competitor is coming out with a new architecture for the first time in many, many years. So, I wonder whether it's on the ASP or the unit or the market share side how you're factoring that into your forecast for the year".

Krzanich replied with: "Sure. I would tell you that we always look at this environment and say there's going to be a competitive risk in the environment. And we're always focused on really, our own product roadmap and making sure that we have the highest performance product. So, when we look at 2017, we still believe that our product roadmap is truly the best ever it's been".

After reports surfacing that AMD wouldn't be launching 6-core variants of its upcoming Ryzen CPUs, there are new reports that AMD will indeed be launching 6-core Ryzen CPUs.

CanardPC tweeted that there is a 6-core/12-thread Ryzen CPU clocked at 3.3GHz base, lower than the 8-core/16-threaded Ryzen CPU. It makes sense, as if the silicon can't handle the additional two CPU cores, they can disable them and have a rock solid 6-core Ryzen chip instead.

VideoCardz is reporting that there are 3 different Ryzen CPUs in the high-end SKUs that are of interest:

The world is excited for AMD's next-gen Ryzen processors, but now there are fresh rumors that the company will only be launching 4- and 8-core versions, without a 6-core version released.

Zolkorn and PCGamesHardware have reported that AMD won't launch a 6-core Ryzen CPU, as the company will launch an 8-core model, and a 4-core model - with, and without ThreadRipper (which should be the name for AMD's HyperThreading competitor).

The new rumors tease that we could expect many different models, with 4/8-core options, SMT functionality, TDP adjustments, and more. We should expect more details on Ryzen CPUs next month.

Qualcomm recently announced their Snapdragon 835, the first 10nm SoC, and here we are already talking about 7nm chips. Qualcomm's 10nm chips are being built using Samsung's newest 10nm processor, and it looks like there's better coming soon.

Samsung announced that they are planning to start producing 7nm chips in early 2018, meaning they could be ready for their nex year's Galaxy S flagship. Samsung is launching their next-generation Galaxy S device later than previous models, which could be due to 10nm delays or yields so that timetable could be optimistic.

Samsung's managing director of LSI Divison reportedly said that the company "will maximize the advantages of EUV (extreme ultraviolet exposure equipment for lithography) in the 7-nanometer process and secure competitiveness in terms of performance and power consumption".

Intel has only just launched its new Kaby Lake CPUs led by the Core i7-7700K, and yet we're hearing rumors already on the company's new HEDT, or high-end desktop processor.

The new Skylake-X will be the successor to the Core i7-6950X, while the lower-end 4-core/8-thread model arrives as the Kaby Lake-X family. The higher-end 10, 8, and 6-core models are based on the older Skylake architecutr, with a higher 140W TDP. The 4-core Kaby Lake-X processor feature a 112W TDP, while all of the new HEDT processors will be pushed as the Core i7-7000 series.

This means we won't see a Core i7-7950X, but rather a K series processor as the report mentions Intel will release 4 new K series products, and no X series product. So we should expect the the possibilities of Intel calling their new HEDT processor the Core i7-7950X.

Intel looks to have an impressive value for money processor based on its new Kaby Lake architecture available, with the new Pentium G4560 costing just $64 - and it competes against processors worth 3x as much.

ComputerBase has released their full performance review on the Pentium G4560, seeing performance from the $64 processor that outperforms the 6-core AMD FX-6300, keeps up with Core i3-6100 processor, and even the $230 former gaming champion, the Core i5-2500K.

The site has a 'total rating' of application and games at 1080p, where you can see that the Pentium G4560 and Core i5-2500K are neck and neck.

AMD is poised to unleash its new Ryzen CPUs sometime in Q1 2017, and from what we've heard it's going to be at the Game Developers Conference - which kicks off on February 27, and ends on March 3.

During GDC 2016, AMD held its huge Capsaicin event, where it better detailed Polaris at the time. Now we're seeing AMD teasing an 'Optimizing for AMD Ryzen CPU (Presented by AMD)' session at GDC 2017, which teases people to "join AMD Game Engineering team members for an introduction to the recently-launched AMD Ryzen CPU".

I've heard from my industry sources that AMD will be launching Ryzen during GDC 2017, and that the 8-core/16-thread Ryzen CPU will be the star of the show. I'm expecting a better, more detailed look at their upcoming Vega graphics card, as well.