Intel launches all-new PC architecture with Core i5/i7 CPUs
"Intel finally brings its Nehalem architecture to its mainstream desktop PC line with today's Core i5/i7 and P55 chipset launch. In contrast to most previous launches, the chipset is actually a big deal this time around, marking as it does Intel's most radical overhaul of basic PC system architecture since the introduction of AGP.
"So with the advent of the P55, Intel's core logic has gone from a two-chip to a one-chip implementation, pushing ahead of the comparable AMD platform. In theory, this very tight, direct coupling of the GPU + GDDR and CPU + DRAM systems should make for a performance boost vs. both earlier topologies."
"Conclusions
The launch of Core i5/i7 and the P55 represent a major step forward for Intel's desktop line, and they bring Nehalem's performance dominance of AMD's offerings onto the mainstream desktop. Intel is now well-positioned against both NVIDIA and AMD/ATI, since the former will soon be squeezed out of the high-volume Intel IGP market entirely (when the GPU goes on-die) and the latter is increasingly forced back into the bargain niche that it had so successfully escaped with the launch of the K8."
Intel's Core i7 870 & i5 750, Lynnfield: Harder, Better, Faster Stronger
"The Lynnfield/P55 launch is huge. Virtually every single motherboard manufacturer has a P55 board available. Prices range from ~$110 - $300 depending on the number of bells and whistles."
"Despite being cheaper, Lynnfield is larger than Bloomfield. The larger die is due to one major addition: an on-die PCIe controller."
"The pink block to the right of the die is the PCIe controller, that's 16 PCIe 2.0 lanes coming right off the chip. Say hello to ultra low latency GPU communication. You'd think that Intel was about to enter the graphics market or something with a design like this."
"Intel made a very important announcement when Nehalem launched last year. Everyone focused on cache sizes, performance or memory latency, but the most important part of Nehalem was far more subtle: the Power Gate Transistor."
"Using some clever materials engineering Intel developed a very low resistance, low leakage, transistor that can effectively drop any circuits behind it to near-zero power consumption; a true off switch. This is the Power Gate Transistor."
"On every single Nehalem (Lynnfield included) lies around 1 million transistors (about the complexity of a 486) whose sole task is managing power. It turns cores off, underclocks them and is generally charged with the task of making sure that power usage is kept to a minimum. "
"Final Words
As I see it, LGA-1366 has a few advantages:
1) High-end multi-GPU Performance
2) Stock Voltage Overclocking
3) Future support for 6-core Gulftown CPUs
Speaking of turbo, I'd say that Intel is definitely on to something here. The performance impact was small with Bloomfield, but turbo on Lynnfield is huge. My tests showed up to a 17% increase in performance depending on the workload, with most CPU-influenced scenarios seeing at least 9 or 10%. The turbo mode transitions happen fast enough to accelerate even simple actions like opening a new window. OS and application responsiveness is significantly improved as a result and it's something that you can actually feel when using a Lynnfield machine. It all works so seamlessly, you just always get the best performance you need. It's like Intel crammed the best single, dual and quad-core processors all into one package.
Lynnfield shows us the beginning of how all microprocessors are going to be made in the future. Even AMD is embracing turbo, we'll see it with Fusion in 2011. Extend turbo to its logical conclusion and you end up with something very exciting. Imagine a processor made up of many different cores, large and small, CPU and GPU. Each one turning on/off depending on the type of workload, and each running as fast as possible without dissipating more heat than your system can handle."
