Administrator DKT27 Posted September 5, 2011 Administrator Share Posted September 5, 2011 AMD and Intel are both preparing to launch new CPU architectures between now and the end of the year, but rumors have surfaced that suggest the two companies may delay their product introductions, albeit for different reasons. Taiwanese site DigiTimes refers to various unnamed "PC Players" who have apparently reported that Intel may push back the introduction of its Ivy Bridge processors from the end of 2011 to late Q1/early Q2 2012. Ivy Bridge is a 'tick' in Intel's tick/tock model; the 22nm die shrink of Sandy Bridge that's scheduled to incorporate an improved DX11-capable graphics core, support for PCI-Express 3.0, and will incorporate Intel's Tri-Gate 3D transistor technology. The article claims that Intel is considering pushing back the Ivy Bridge introduction and slowing its rate of capital investment. The company originally budgeted $500 million to upgrade its Fab 24 facility to 22nm but has apparently changed its timeline; an Intel spokesperson told Forbes this week that "as of today we are not planning to build 22 nm at Fab 24.” DigiTimes and Forbes both chalk up this strategy shift towards concerns that PC demand is weakening and that the second half of 2011 may not be as strong as the company initially expected. Logically, the explanation fits, but it's not how Intel typically does business. The company has historically chosen to invest and innovate its way out of recessions and often refers to such events as economic opportunities. While other companies emphasize cost-cutting, Intel often goes out of its way to announce new plans for capital investment or to highlight its expansion into developing markets. This makes us rather dubious that the company would delay Ivy Bridge and cancel a planned 22nm upgrade simply due to weaker-than-expected PC demand. If the rumors of delay are accurate, it's much more likely that the company is taking additional time to polish its 22nm technology prior to launch. Its Tri-Gate technology introduces a new variable at the 22nm node and Ivy Bridge's mobile focus may mean the company is making sure it can launch a full line of CPUs at very low TDPs.Could Dozer Be Dozing?Meanwhile on the other side of the CPU pasture, there are rumors that AMD's Bulldozer might slip once again. In this case, the rumor appears to be based on the fact that AMD hasn't officially confirmed that it shipped its upcoming server-class Bulldozer products for revenue during August. This is possible, but seems somewhat unlikely. The CPU's anticipated launch date is already close enough that the company should already know if it can launch the product or not; waiting until now to announce a delay isn't something Wall Street would take kindly. Moreover, AMD has been fairly transparent about its launch dates and delays ever since the badly botched launch of the original K10-based Phenom processor back in 2007. Llano has been shipping for revenue for several months, and we're not aware of any 32nm production troubles at GlobalFoundries. If the chip has been delayed, AMD could take more damage from refusing to admit it than from missing the window--Bulldozer won't have an impact on Q3 finances regardless of whether it launches in September or October, and the pre-Christmas season will only have a modest impact on AMD's year-long financials. View: Original Article Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndoe Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 AMD is fast losing ground. They need dozer on the shelves immediately, or better yet, yesterday! (albeit after having ironed out all the bugs - they don't want to ship a cpu full of bugs when they desperately need to regain the consumer/enthusiast market share back from intel) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polgaso Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 is this news somehow related?Core i7-3960X About 47% Faster On Average Than Core i7-990X: IntelSlides of a key presentation to Intel's partners was leaked to sections of the media, which reveal Intel's own performance testing of the Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition, the top-model of the socket LGA2011 "Sandy Bridge-E" processor series. Meet the family here. In its comparison, Intel maintained the Core i7-990X Extreme Edition socket LGA1366 processor as this generation's top offering. It was pitted against the Core i7-3960X in a battery of tests that included some enthusiast favourites such as Cinebench 11.5, POV-Ray 3.7, 3DMark 11 physics, Pro-Show Gold 4.5, and some OEM favourites such as SPECint_rate base2006, SPECfp_rate base2006, and SiSoft SANDRA 2011B multimedia and memory bandwidth.Core i7-3960X About 47% Faster On Average Than Core i7-990X: Intel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndoe Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 it does seem to have the full potential to cause diarrhea among the AMD ranks :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polgaso Posted September 5, 2011 Share Posted September 5, 2011 the bulldozer has been much anticipated by it fans. as with intel there is news too of an 8 core new chip. there was even a "leak" on ebay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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