Intel on Wednesday said it is developing a new category of highly integrated, purpose-built and Web-savvy System on Chip (SoC) designs and products, most of them based on its energy efficient Atom processors.
The company also unveiled its first eight such products under
its Intel EP80579 Integrated Processor family for security,
storage, communications, and industrial robotics.
For the first time, Intel is architecting several of these
smarter SoC chip designs based on the same blueprint as the
company's existing processors that run the bulk of the
Internet, called Intel architecture (IA). Intel said that
products would offer new levels of performance and energy
efficiency versus traditional SoCs, combine multiple functions
and would be customized to target the company's traditional
computing businesses and several growth areas across Consumer
Electronics (CE), Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) and embedded
markets.
Intel has more than 15 SoC projects planned internally,
including the company's first Consumer Electronics (CE) chip
codenamed "Canmore" scheduled for introduction later this year
and the second-generation "Sodaville" next year. In addition,
Intel's second-generation embedded product line is scheduled to
arrive in 2009, with Intel's next-generation platform for
Mobile Internet Devices code-named "Moorestown" and featuring
"Lincroft," scheduled for release in 2009/2010. Many of these
new products will be based on the Intel Atom processor core.
"We're now able to deliver more highly integrated products
ranging from industrial robotics and in-car infotainment
systems to set-top boxes, MIDs and other devices. By designing
more complex systems onto smaller chips, Intel will scale the
performance, functionality and software compatibility of IA
while controlling the overall power, cost and size requirements
to better meet respective market needs," said Gadi Singer, vice
president of Intel's Mobility Group and general manager, SoC
Enabling Group. "Best of all, customers and consumers will
equally benefit."
Four of the eight new smart SoC Intel EP80579 Integrated
Processor products include Intel QuickAssist Technology that
simplifies the use and deployment of security and packet
accelerators in Intel-based computers. Each SoC is based on the
Intel Pentium M processor, integrated memory controller hub,
and a variety of integrated communications and embedded I/O
controllers.
These processors include a 256KB of cache memory. The models
are illustrated in the following table:
Processor model
|
Frequency
| Supported DDR2 memory
|
TDP |
QuickAssist
|
NU80579EZ600C |
600MHz |
400/533/667MHz |
11W |
Yes |
NU80579EZ600CT |
NU80579EZ004C |
1.066GHz |
400/533/667/800MHz |
18W |
NU80579EZ009C |
1.2GHz |
19W |
NU80579EB600C |
600MHz |
400/533/667MHz |
13W |
No |
NU80579ED004C |
1.066GHz |
400/533/667/800MHz |
20W |
NU80579ED004CT |
NU80579ED009C |
1.2GHz |
21W |
These products come in a range of speeds, power dissipation and
commercial/industrial temperature options. In some cases, they
will lead to platforms that have a 45 percent smaller board
footprint and 34 percent lower power dissipation.
The smart SoC versions with Intel QuickAssist Technology
accelerate cryptographic and packet processing for security
appliances such as virtual private network (VPN) gateways,
firewalls, Unified Threat Management (UTM) and enterprise voice
applications such as Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) and
converged access platforms.
Intel said that it already has 50 customers for these products,
many of which have had access to them for nearly a year. A
variety of initial systems will arrive this quarter, with more
expected later this year and next, as embedded system design
cycles can take 12 to 18 months to get into the marketplace.