AMD Ships 16-core Interlagos CPUs, Expands Desktop Line-Up of AMD Fusion APUs
AMD today started shipping its first Interlagos 16-core processors
for servers to its OEMs. The company also announced availability of the AMD A-Series Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) A4-3300 and A4-3400 desktop processors.
16-core "Interlagos" processor
The "Interlagos"16-core processor is based on the "Bulldozer" core and it has been manufactured on 32nm process technology. The processors are compatibile with the platform and infrastructure of AMD's existing Opteron 6100 series.
Among the interesting features of AMD's new "Interlagos" processors, is the implementation of a new TDP Power Cap.
In today's products you can cap the power of a server by turning off processor states, though that ultimately can lead to somewhat lower performance. The currently provided AMD Power Cap Manager allows users to limit the processor P-states and cut power consumption although this limits the processor's ability to get to the top frequency. By essentially "locking out" the top P-state, the processor never gets into that state, even under heavy utilization, helping cut down total power to the processor.
With the new TDP Power Cap for AMD Opteron processors, users will be able to set TDP power limits in 1 watt increments.This means that instead of having to choose between different TDPs for processors, users will able to buy any power range and then modulate down.
For example, let's say that you have a maximum power draw on your fully configured server of 300W, and you have 42 slots in your server. The simple math says that you have 12.6Kw of power load that you need to be able to support. Now, if your power budget only allows you to bring 12Kw to the rack, you essentially have 2 slots that need to be left open in the rack because you can only support 40 and not 42 servers. But, by utilizing a custom TDP, you could drop the max power that some servers could draw, bringing you in under the limit of 12Kw and still getting 42 servers in the rack.
"This is a monumental moment for the industry as this first 'Bulldozer' core represents the beginning of unprecedented performance scaling for x86 CPUs," said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, AMD Products Group. "The flexible new 'Bulldozer' architecture will give Web and datacenter customers the scalability they need to handle emerging cloud and virtualization workloads."
AMD started production of CPUs in August and expects to start shipping it to its system partners in the fourth quarter of 2011.
According to unofficial information, AMD is also planning a September release date for its new "Valencia" Opteron 4200-series chips with six or eight cores as well as "Interlagos" Opteron 6200-series microprocessors with eight and twelve cores.
New desktop APUs
AMD also today announced availability of the AMD A-Series Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) A4-3300 and A4-3400 desktop processors, bringing the entry-level desktop APU price down to $70 (U.S. suggested retail price) for consumers who want PCs with HD graphics, and fast application and connectivity speeds.
The AMD A4-3300 and A4-3400 desktop APUs each combine two x86 CPU cores with 160 Radeon cores, enabling DirectX 11-capable discrete- level graphics and dedicated HD video processing on a single chip.
The AMD A4-3300 and A4-3400 APUs also support:
- AMD Steady Video for instant removal of shakes and jitters when re- watching video
- AMD Dual Graphics for a visual performance boost when paired with select AMD Radeon HD 6000 Series graphics cards.
- Integrated USB 3.0 controller
- AMD VISION Engine Software to provide users with regular updates to help improve system performance and stability, and to introduce new software enhancements.
With a suggested retail price of $70.00 (U.S), the AMD A4-3300 APU operates at 2.5GHz (CPU) and 444MHz (GPU) with 160 Radeon Cores, 1MB of L2 cache and a TDP of 65W. With a suggested retail price of $75.00 (U.S), the AMD A4-3400 APU operates at 2.7GHz (CPU) and 600MHz (GPU) with 160 Radeon Cores, 1MB of L2 cache and a TDP of 65W.
All AMD A-Series processors are designed for use with FM1 motherboards.
The "Interlagos"16-core processor is based on the "Bulldozer" core and it has been manufactured on 32nm process technology. The processors are compatibile with the platform and infrastructure of AMD's existing Opteron 6100 series.
Among the interesting features of AMD's new "Interlagos" processors, is the implementation of a new TDP Power Cap.
In today's products you can cap the power of a server by turning off processor states, though that ultimately can lead to somewhat lower performance. The currently provided AMD Power Cap Manager allows users to limit the processor P-states and cut power consumption although this limits the processor's ability to get to the top frequency. By essentially "locking out" the top P-state, the processor never gets into that state, even under heavy utilization, helping cut down total power to the processor.
With the new TDP Power Cap for AMD Opteron processors, users will be able to set TDP power limits in 1 watt increments.This means that instead of having to choose between different TDPs for processors, users will able to buy any power range and then modulate down.
For example, let's say that you have a maximum power draw on your fully configured server of 300W, and you have 42 slots in your server. The simple math says that you have 12.6Kw of power load that you need to be able to support. Now, if your power budget only allows you to bring 12Kw to the rack, you essentially have 2 slots that need to be left open in the rack because you can only support 40 and not 42 servers. But, by utilizing a custom TDP, you could drop the max power that some servers could draw, bringing you in under the limit of 12Kw and still getting 42 servers in the rack.
"This is a monumental moment for the industry as this first 'Bulldozer' core represents the beginning of unprecedented performance scaling for x86 CPUs," said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, AMD Products Group. "The flexible new 'Bulldozer' architecture will give Web and datacenter customers the scalability they need to handle emerging cloud and virtualization workloads."
AMD started production of CPUs in August and expects to start shipping it to its system partners in the fourth quarter of 2011.
According to unofficial information, AMD is also planning a September release date for its new "Valencia" Opteron 4200-series chips with six or eight cores as well as "Interlagos" Opteron 6200-series microprocessors with eight and twelve cores.
New desktop APUs
AMD also today announced availability of the AMD A-Series Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) A4-3300 and A4-3400 desktop processors, bringing the entry-level desktop APU price down to $70 (U.S. suggested retail price) for consumers who want PCs with HD graphics, and fast application and connectivity speeds.
The AMD A4-3300 and A4-3400 desktop APUs each combine two x86 CPU cores with 160 Radeon cores, enabling DirectX 11-capable discrete- level graphics and dedicated HD video processing on a single chip.
The AMD A4-3300 and A4-3400 APUs also support:
- AMD Steady Video for instant removal of shakes and jitters when re- watching video
- AMD Dual Graphics for a visual performance boost when paired with select AMD Radeon HD 6000 Series graphics cards.
- Integrated USB 3.0 controller
- AMD VISION Engine Software to provide users with regular updates to help improve system performance and stability, and to introduce new software enhancements.
With a suggested retail price of $70.00 (U.S), the AMD A4-3300 APU operates at 2.5GHz (CPU) and 444MHz (GPU) with 160 Radeon Cores, 1MB of L2 cache and a TDP of 65W. With a suggested retail price of $75.00 (U.S), the AMD A4-3400 APU operates at 2.7GHz (CPU) and 600MHz (GPU) with 160 Radeon Cores, 1MB of L2 cache and a TDP of 65W.
All AMD A-Series processors are designed for use with FM1 motherboards.
