2012-12-21-130

[Rumour] Intel Sandy Bridge Roadmap Leaked

Computerbase has leaked a table listing upcoming next-gen CPUs fromIntel - Sandy Bridge. The first Sandy Bridge CPUs are quad/dual core,and is expected to release in January 2011. Enthusiast class 6/8 coreSandy Bridge variants will release in H2 2011. For now, however,Computerbase's list is dedicated to the mainstream/performance dual/quadcore Sandy Bridge CPUs.

As previously rumoured,the Core i3/i5/i7 2000 series nomenclature is now widely accepted. Inessence, the general trend will carry over from the current Core 2010series, with a "2" prefix attached to separate Nehalem from SandyBridge.

The top Sandy Bridge CPU in Q1 2011 will be the Core i7 2600K. It will be clocked at 3.4 GHz, with a speedy 3.8 GHz turbo. Compared to the fastest Nehalem quad core, the Core i7 975 XE, the Core i7 2600K will end up faster, with a higher clock speed. Do note that the main objective for Sandy Bridge is not IPC, but efficiency. As we have seen before, and recently, clock-for-clock, Sandy Bridge is only slightly faster than Nehalem. The Core i7 2600K will be the fastest ever quad core CPU, but Intel's Core i7 980X will continue to be the overall performance king. In applications that scale poorly with multiple threads, however, the Core i7 2600K might sneak past the Core i7 980X. However, these CPUs are replacements for Lynnfield, rather than Bloomfield and Gulftown. A near identical Core i7 2600 is planned - the absence of "K" likely signifying a locked multiplier. These CPUs, like Lynnfield, feature 8MB L3 cache and 95W TDP. A Core i7 2600S, 65W version, will be available clocked at 2.8 GHz, with turbo continuing to be at 3.8 GHz.

Amazingly, according to Computerbase's roadmap, the Core i7 2600 CPUs will be the only ones with Hyper Threading enabled. The Core i5 2500 (3.3 GHz) and Core i5 2400 (3.1 GHz) CPUs will follow a similar nomenclature, but with HT disabled, and only 6MB L3 cache enabled. Core i5 2500 will also have a "T" version, operating at 45W, and clocked at 2.3 GHz. However, Core i5 2400 is only available in the 2400 (3.1 GHz) and 65W 2400 S (2.5 GHz), with no "K" or "T" versions in sight. Instead, we have a Core i5 2390T, which is a dual core clocked at 2.7 GHz, with a TDP of 35W. Confused? If true, it seems Intel has made things even more complicated with Sandy Bridge.

The other dual core CPUs are Core i3 2120 and Core i3 2100, clocked at 3.3 GHz and 3.1 GHz, respectively, with a TDP of 65W. They only feature 3 MB L3 cache, 1 MB less than Clarkdale. A Core i3 2100T, clocked at 2.5 GHz, consumes only 35W. These Core i3 CPUs will be separated from the only other dual core - the i5 2390T - by the disabled Turbo. This means, according to this roadmap, there's no full power dual core Sandy Bridge with Turbo!

It is not just the desktop CPU nomenclature that is a mess - the notebook nomenclature is even worse! The top part - Core i7 2920 XM (phew!) clocks in at 2.5 GHz, a major improvement from current flagship Core i7 940 XM, which is clocked at 2.13 GHz. This is no surprise, considering efficiency being one of the key objectives of Sandy Bridge. However, the saucy TDP of 55W stays.

Computerbase's leaked table remains confusing, at best, perhaps even more that we have come to expect from Intel. Software disables on features like HyperThreading or Turbo is some thing no one likes, and there seems to be even more branding divisions caused by these disables. With hard disables (cache) added to this, it makes things unnecessary complicated, creating five or six divisions between two chips over three families.

We certainly hope Intel can clarify their nomenclature before release. If it stays the way Computerbase is reporting, it is likely to cause customers a headache or two. If two chips are so confusing, then how about four? To think we will have further six core and eight core Sandy Bridge CPUs to name under the same family later in 2011...

Complete tables available at Computerbase.