Tag Archives: Intel

Intel Announces Third-Generation SSD : Intel SSD 320 Series

Leave a reply

Intel announced its third generation Solid State Drives the Intel® Solid-State Drive 320 Series (Intel® SSD 320 Series).

Highlights of Intel’s Third Generation SSD

  • Third-generation Intel® SSD 320 Series on 25-nm NAND flash memory offers 40-, 80-, 120-, 160-GB plus higher capacity 300- and 600GB options.
  • Advanced architecture enables robust, reliable SSDs with enhanced security features for desktop/notebook PCs or server data center storage.
  • Performance, reliability upgrades enhance solid line of high-performing SSDs with up to $100 price drop over current Intel® X25-M SSD model.

From the Press Release: “Intel designed new quality and reliability features into our SSDs to take advantage of the latest 25nm silicon, so we could deliver cost advantages to our customers,” said Pete Hazen, director of marketing for the Intel Non-Volatile Memory (NVM) Solutions Group. “Intel’s third generation of SSDs adds enhanced data security features, power-loss management and innovative data redundancy features to once again advance SSD technology. Whether it’s a consumer or corporate IT looking to upgrade from a hard disk drive, or an enterprise seeking to deploy SSDs in their data centers, the new Intel SSD 320 Series will continue to build on our reputation of high quality and dependability over the life of the SSD.”

The Intel SSD 320 is  for the use on desktop and notebook PCs. An SSD is more rugged, uses less power and reduces the HDD bottleneck to speed PC processes such as boot up and the opening of files and favorite applications. The Intel SSD 320 Series comes in 40 gigabyte (GB), 80GB, 120GB, 160GB and new higher capacity 300GB and 600GB versions.

Intel SSD 320 prices,  are as follows: 40GB at $89; 80GB at $159; 120GB at $209; 160GB at $289; 300GB at $529 and 600GB at $1,069.

Intel® X25-V SSD Priced at $125

Leave a reply

The Intel® X25-V Value SATA Solid-State Drive (SSD) is targeted for value netbooks, dual-drive desktop PCs as a “boot drive” and advanced RAID 0 configurations to boost system and gaming performance. The 40GB SSD retails for $125.

Highlights

  • Intel introduces X25-V Value SATA Solid-State Drive (SSD) at $125 entry price point.
  • Perfect for value netbooks or as boot drive for dual-drive SSD/HDD desktops, X25-V delivers SSD performance at an affordable price.
  • Desktop PCs can now combine an SSD with HDD to boost overall system performance and speed system boot up and opening of applications

The Intel X25-V features 40GB of 34nm NAND flash memory. This non-volatile memory retains data, even when the power is turned off, and is used in applications such as smartphones, personal music players, memory cards or SSDs for fast and reliable storage of data. SSD benefits over a traditional HDD include higher performance, battery saving and ruggedness. “Adding the Intel X25-V to our existing family of high-performance SSDs gives our resellers a full range of high-performing, quality SSDs for notebook upgrades, dual-drive desktop set ups or embedded applications,” said Pete Hazen, director of marketing for the Intel NAND Solutions Group. “SSD adoption continues to be one of the more exciting trends in personal computing, and this entry-level product enables users to enjoy the productivity and performance benefits of Intel SSDs at a new price point.”

Overview Of New Intel Core i7(Nehalem) Processor – Part 2

2 Replies

Before entering on the details about the architectural features present on the Nehalem CPUs, let’s make a summary of the base elements that are common to the many different versions: server, desktop and notebook. It’s worth noticing how the new architecture engineering process used by Intel aims at obtaining CPUs that can be used in all three sectors, by simply slightly changing architecture and CPU characteristics to better adapt to each of the sectors.

To make things clear, we can mention a few examples: for the notebook CPUs, there’s a lower energy consumptions, while for the server solutions, there could be bigger cache numbers. In general, analyzing the technical characteristics from the Nehalem CPUs when compared to the Core 2 family, it’s clear how the developing team aimedf at implementing features that would bring the best performance benefits on a server level, with an approach that is somewhat similar to wht AMD has done in the past with their first K8 family CPUs, Opteron and Athlon 64.

These are the base elements on the Nehalem family CPU’s.

- Native Quad Core architecture: Intel has abandoned the Multi Chip Package approach, choosing instead what is defined as “monolithic design” for the Nehalem CPU’s. The four cores, similar to the Phenom solutions from AMD, are integrated in the same silicon block instead of pairing two dual-core dice in the same package.

- DDR3 Memory controller integrated on the processor: it’s a new feature for the Intel processors, the integrated memory controller has been on the market for a while now with the AMD CPus since the K8 family, with the first Opteron CPU presented on April 2003.

- Integrated on-die L3 Cache in all processors, up to 8MB; and also, the size of the L2 cache, specific to each core, was noticeably reduced compared to what has been done in the previous Core 2 processors. In future versions, the Nehalem processors will feature differen L3 cache versions, according to the market sector where it belongs;

- Return of the Simultaneous Multi-Threading technology, better known with the market name “Hyper-Threading”, thanks to which the Operational System can recognize the processor as featuring a double number of logical cores than what’s physically integrated. This technology was introduced by Intel with some Pentium 4 models, but it wasn’t implemented in the Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad solutions;

- A new set of SSE 4.2 instructions, which are extensions of SSE4 instructions introduced for the first time with the Core 2 CPUs based on Penryn cores;

- QPI (Quick Path Interconnect) technology debut: it comes to replace the front side bus on the connection between Processor, memory modules and in some CPU models, also chipset. For the first Core i7 family models, based on LGA 1366 socket, the connection between the processor and chipset will be done through a QPI link.

The first Nehalem processor versions with quad core architecture, the Core i7 family solutions, will integrate 731 million transistors, built using a 45nm fabrication process. The following evolution of Nehalem processors will feature the same fabrication process and will have a modular architecture that was implemented on the Nehalem project while in its design stages.

These processors can, in fact, be easily modified in order to implement a different number of cores, or integrate different types of features internally, in comparison to what had been presented in the first versions before the launch.

Two examples can make this flexibility more clear: the first is the Nehalem-EX CPUs, solutions that feature eight physical cores to be used specifically in server systems, which will be launched sometime this year, and that have been first announced back in the IDF Fall 2008. The second is the integration in future Nehalem versions aimed for a low-entry market, of a GPU: with this product, Intel aims at presenting its own alternative to AMD’s Fusion Family CPU’s, which feature both CPU and GPU components.

Intel’s forthcoming many core processor codenamed ‘Larrabee’

Leave a reply

Intel Corporation is presenting a paper at the SIGGRAPH 2008 industry conference in Los Angeles on Aug. 12 that describes features and capabilities of its first-ever forthcoming “many-core” blueprint or architecture codenamed “Larrabee.”

Details unveiled in the SIGGRAPH paper include a new approach to the software rendering 3-D pipeline, a many-core (many processor engines in a product) programming model and performance analysis for several applications.

http://www.pcper.com/images/reviews/453/slides01.jpg

Larrabee

The first product based on Larrabee will target the personal computer graphics market and is expected in 2009 or 2010. Larrabee will be the industry’s first many-core x86 Intel architecture, meaning it will be based on an array of many processors. The individual processors are similar to the Intel processors that power the Internet and the laptops, PCs and servers that access and network to it.

Larrabee is expected to kick start an industry-wide effort to create and optimize software for the dozens, hundreds and thousands of cores expected to power future computers. Intel has a number of internal teams, projects and software-related efforts underway to speed the transition, but the tera-scale research program has been the single largest investment in Intel’s technology research and has partnered with more than 400 universities, DARPA and companies such as Microsoft and HP to move the industry in this direction.

Over time, the consistency of Intel architecture and thus developer freedom afforded by the Larrabee architecture will bring about massive innovation in many areas and market segments. For example, while current games keep getting more and more realistic, they do so within a rigid and limited framework. Working directly with some of the world’s top 3-D graphics experts, Larrabee will give developers of games and APIs (Application Programming Interface) a blank canvas onto which they can innovate like never before.

Initial product implementations of the Larrabee architecture will target discrete graphics applications, support DirectX and OpenGL, and run existing games and programs. Additionally, a broad potential range of highly parallel applications including scientific and engineering software will benefit from the Larrabee native C/C++ programming model.

Additional details of the Larrabee architecture discussed in this paper include:

  • The Larrabee architecture has a pipeline derived from the dual-issue Intel Pentium® processor, which uses a short execution pipeline with a fully coherent cache structure. The Larrabee architecture provides significant modern enhancements such as a wide vector processing unit (VPU), multi-threading, 64-bit extensions and sophisticated pre-fetching. This will enable a massive increase in available computational power combined with the familiarity and ease of programming of the Intel architecture.
  • Larrabee also includes a select few fixed function logic blocks to support graphics and other applications. These units are carefully chosen to balance strong performance per watt, yet contribute to the flexibility and programmability of the architecture.
  • A coherent on-die 2nd level cache allows efficient inter-processor communication and high-bandwidth local data to be access by CPU cores, making the writing of software programs simpler.
  • The Larrabee native programming model supports a variety of highly parallel applications, including those that use irregular data structures. This enables development of graphics APIs, rapid innovation of new graphics algorithms, and true general purpose computation on the graphics processor with established PC software development tools.
  • Larrabee features task scheduling which is performed entirely with software, rather than in fixed function logic. Therefore rendering pipelines and other complex software systems can adjust their resource scheduling based each workload’s unique computing demand.
  • The Larrabee architecture supports four execution threads per core with separate register sets per thread. This allows the use of a simple efficient in-order pipeline, but retains many of the latency-hiding benefits of more complex out-of-order pipelines when running highly parallel applications.
  • The Larrabee architecture uses a 1024 bits-wide, bi-directional ring network (i.e., 512 bits in each direction) to allow agents to communicate with each other in low latency manner resulting in super fast communication between cores.
  • The Larrabee architecture fully supports IEEE standards for single and double precision floating-point arithmetic. Support for these standards is a pre-requisite for many types of tasks including financial applications.

Intel’s Solid State Drives – High Performance, Rugged, Reliable and Low-Power Storage Solution

4 Replies

Intel Released Intel® X18-M and X25-M Mainstream SATA Solid-State Drives (SSDs) based on multi-level cell (MLC) NAND flash technology for laptop and desktop computers. The X18-M is a 1.8-inch drive and the X25-M a 2.5-inch drive. SSD increases overall system performance and faster booting. Since SSDs are like flash drive it has got no moving parts or motors like in Hard Disks, SSD  run cooler and less noise. And also Hard Disk limit the input/output data speed because of it mechanical limitations, but in SSDs there is no mechanical parts so speeds of data transmission has got no boundary, to maximaize the efficency of your processor. Lab tests show that the Intel X18-M and X25M increase storage system performance nine times over traditional hard disk drive performance.

The Intel X18-M and X25-M Mainstream SATA SSDs are available in 80 gigabyte (GB) capacities, with 160GB versions sampling in the fourth quarter of this year. The 80GB drive achieves up to 250MB per second read speeds, up to 70MB per second write speeds and 85-microsecond read latency for fast performance.

There is no idea about the cost of this product in India. Anyhow it won’t be cheaper at the crawling age. Lets wait for the arrival of SSD.

BSNL, HCL and Intel Accelerate Broadband Wireless Internet Proliferation in Rural India

Leave a reply
  • BSNL and Intel to jointly propagate wireless broadband Internet to build nationwide rural WiMAX network
  • HCL- and Intel-designed WiMAX-capable nettops to be available in coming months

Intel and BSNL will jointly propagate wireless broadband Internet in what is intended to ultimately become a nationwide mobile WiMAX network. BSNL also will work with Intel and HCL to make available in India’s rural regions WiMAX-capable nettop computers designed by the two companies and made in India by HCL using the Intel® Atom™ processor.

Review : Intel Core i7 Processor Extreme Edition

Leave a reply

corei7eeProduct information

  • 3.20 GHz core speed
  • 8 processing threads with Intel® HT technology
  • 8 MB of Intel® Smart Cache
  • 3 Channels of DDR3 1066 MHz memory

The good: Fastest high-end desktop CPU; supporting motherboard supports both graphics card vendors’ multicard technologies.

The badThe bad: Requires an expensive new motherboard; chipset needs three memory sticks for maximum efficiency.

The bottom lineThe bottom line: Thanks to an expensive new motherboard requirement, Intel’s new Core i7 desktop processors will remain enthusiast and professional-level parts until more affordable complementary hardware comes out later next year. Speed never comes cheap, however, and if you’re willing to spend for it now, you’ll find yourself in possession of the fastest CPU on the market.

The Core i7 965 Extreme Edition runs at 3.20GHz and features a QPI (QuickPath Interface) throughput of 6.4GT/s, which is the key difference here. The mainstream versions of the processor include the Core i7 920 and 940, clocked at 2.66GHz and 2.93GHz, respectively. These more affordable processors feature a QPI throughput of just 4.8GT/s, so it will be interesting to discover what kind of impact this has on performance.

Intel Solid-State Drives Win Three Prestigious Awards

Leave a reply

The Intel® X18-M/X25-M and X25E SATA Solid-State Drives (SSDs) continue to be honored for their breakthrough technology winning the Electronic Products Magazine Product of the Year. Also this week, the Intel SSDs won a special Storage Visions Founders Award recognizing visionary companies that advance the state of the art in storage technologies. The Intel SSDs can be viewed at the International CES Innovations Showcase winners exhibit or the Intel Booth located at the Central Hall #7153 in the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Intel Introduces Core™ i7, Xeon® 3400 and First Core™ i5 Processors

Leave a reply

Intel Corporation introduced several high-performance desktop and server processors today, bringing the next level of integration and intelligence to computers. The new Intel Core™ i5 processor family, two new Intel Core™ i7 processors and the Intel® Xeon processor 3400 series bring Intel’s latest Nehalem microarchitecture to mainstream desktop and entry server markets.

New Intel® Core™ Processors for Consumers
Formerly codenamed “Lynnfield,” these new chips are based on Intel’s award-winning Nehalem microarchitecture and are designed for consumers who need top-notch performance for digital media, productivity, gaming and other demanding applications. These processors, along with the new Intel P55 express chipset, are available today.

All processors are lead- and halogen-free1 and feature Intel® exclusive Turbo Boost Technology. The top-of-the-line Core i7 processors also support Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology. Combined, these features give computer users absolute “intelligent” performance when necessary and optimum power-efficiency when the computer is lightly loaded.

Computers Just Got Smaller
The new chipset brings the most revolutionary design changes since the invention of the PCI bus in the early 1990s and sets the stage for Intel’s forthcoming 2010 compute platform. The Intel® P55 Express Chipset will be the baseline building block component for motherboards worldwide, delivering great new levels of performance and scalability for everyone from the retail buyer to the technically savvy do-it-yourselfer.

The new Core i7 and i5 processors are the first Intel processors to integrate both a 16-lane PCI Express 2 graphics port and two-channel memory controller, enabling all input/output and manageability functions to be handled by the single-chip Intel P55 Express Chipset. Previous Intel chipsets required two separate chips. A new Direct Media Interface (DMI) connects between the processor and chipset. The chipset supports 8 PCI Express 2.0 x1 Ports (2.5GT/s) for flexible device support. Dual graphics cards are supported in a “2×8″ configuration. The chipset also supports 6 SATA 3 Gb/s Ports with Intel® Matrix Storage Technology providing RAID levels 0/1/5/10. Up to 14 USB 2.0 Ports can be supported with the chipset’s integrated USB 2.0 Rate Matching Hub, along with Intel® High Definition Audio for premium digital sound. The new processors are the first to be supported by the new Land Grid Array (LGA) 1156 package and socket technology.

Better Entry Servers
Small businesses requiring 24/7 operation and educators now have more reasons than ever to buy a purpose-built server with Intel’s new Xeon processors and Intel® 3400 and 3420 chipsets. These new products improve small business productivity by running email, file, print and dynamic Web serving tasks more efficiently. They also improve education by enabling dependable classroom collaboration and making school administrative services more productive. Servers based on Xeon 3400 processors provide more dependability over desktop systems through differentiated features such as Error Correcting Code memory and RAID 0/1/5/10 for server operating systems. They are designed to help small businesses grow by enabling up to 64 percent2 more sale transactions and up to 56 percent faster business response time. This improvement is enabled with Intel’s Nehalem microarchitecture and a 4x improvement in memory capacity (32 GB). Intel® Turbo Boost Technology and Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology enable these servers to automatically adapt their performance to unique business needs. The processors launched today also include the Intel® Xeon® L3426, a low-power variant that delivers up to 188 percent improvement in energy efficiency per dollar than the previous-generation Intel® Xeon® X3380, and enables innovative server form factors for space and thermally constrained environments.

intel core i processors

Intel Xeon® ‘Nehalem-EX’ Processor – Preview

Leave a reply

Intel previewed the new Intel Xeon Processor code named ‘Nehalem-EX’. The Nehalem-EX processor will feature up to eight cores inside a single chip supporting 16 threads and 24MB of cache. Nehalem-EX will also double the memory capacity with up to 16 memory slots per processor socket, and offer four high-bandwidth QuickPath Interconnect links. Nehalem-EX will provide tremendous scalability, from large-memory two-socket systems through eight-socket systems capable of processing 128 threads simultaneously without the need for third-party chips to “glue” the platform together.

The Nehalem-EX Advantage

  • Intel Nehalem Architecture built on Intel’s unique 45nm high-k metal gate technology process
  • Up to 8 cores per processor
  • Up to 16 threads per processor with Intel® Hyper-threading
  • Scalability up to eight sockets via Quick Path Interconnects and greater with third-party node controllers
  • QuickPath Architecture with four high-bandwidth links
  • 24MB of shared cache
  • Integrated memory controllers
  • Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  • Intel scalable memory buffer and scalable memory interconnects
  • Up to 9x the memory bandwidth of previous generation
  • Support for up to 16 memory slots per processor socket
  • Advanced RAS capabilities including MCA Recovery
  • 2.3 billion transistors