K8 will not die: more to come in 2008

Author: Tim Smalley
Published: 5th December 2007
Comments (12) Stumble
K8 will not die: more to come in 2008

AMD hasn't finished with the K8 architecture yet - it apparently believes it's the way it'll return to profitability in the short term.

According to leaked AMD roadmaps, the company is planning to introduce eleven new 65nm K8 processors in the first half of 2008. In comparison, the company will release just three more quad-core Phenom processors along with two tri-core Phenoms, on top of its two quad-core chips which were introduced last month, in the same timeframe.

Most of the new K8 processors will merely be 65nm ‘Brisbane’ variants of the remaining 90nm ‘Windsor’ processors that AMD still produces – in other words, they’re not entirely new models.

However, it’s worth noting that the ‘Brisbane’ core is not a 65nm equivalent of the ‘Windsor’ die, as the two have differing L2 cache sizes (2x512KB vs. 2x1MB). AMD will make up the deficit with a few frequency changes and there will also be some TDP variations as a result of the move to the more energy-efficient process.

The first processor to make the transition will be the Athlon 64 X2 5600+, which will have its clockspeed increased from 2.8GHz to 2.9GHz, while its TDP will be reduced from 89W to 65W. According to DailyTech, availability of this first 65nm transition is scheduled for Q1 2008.

This puts some, but not all, of our worries about AMD’s 65nm process to bed. It shows that AMD’s 65nm process is maturing, but is it maturing fast enough? After all, in order for AMD to compete with Intel at the high-end, it’s going to need a quad-core chip that runs at at least 3.0GHz.

DailyTech says that AMD will also discontinue the Athlon 64 X2 6000+ and Athlon 64 X2 6400+ processors. This concerns us a little and suggests that the process still has a ways to go to reach the frequencies required to compete with Intel at the high-end.

The report also says that AMD will also release three new ‘Energy Efficient’ processors in Q2 2008. These will be known as the Athlon 4850e, Athlon 4450e and Athlon 4050e, which will run at 2.5GHz, 2.3GHz and 2.1GHz respectively. All of the chips are based on the 'Brisbane' core and will feature 45W TDPs.

This comes as a surprise to us, because AMD CEO Hector Ruiz said at a conference in Bangalore that the company’s number one short term goal was to return to profitability soon – apparently this means refocusing some of its efforts on the older K8 architecture is the way to return to profitability. Let us know your thoughts on AMD’s move in the forums.
Quote Amon 5th December 2007, 17:29
This should probably be taken as proof that the K8 was a wicked chip, going down in history as the Intel killer. Or that AMD hasn't been able to afford development on newer ones.
Quote Ramble 5th December 2007, 17:59
It does need to be killed. Only 939 rocked as an architecture, everything else is sucking.
Quote RotoSequence 5th December 2007, 18:21
So long as it keeps AMD afloat and they continue to try to get a worthy successor architecture up, who cares?
Quote DXR_13KE 5th December 2007, 20:11
Quote:
Originally Posted by RotoSequence
So long as it keeps AMD afloat and they continue to try to get a worthy successor architecture up, who cares?

i agree
Quote devdevil85 5th December 2007, 21:09
/\ ditto to that
Quote Naberius 5th December 2007, 22:04
I think its good to see that AMD is trying to recover, but i don't agree that this is the best way of doing it, they should pile their resorces into a processor that can rival the intel's instead of just trying to beat them on price. We all know how it goes, you don't mind forking out the extra £10/20 (or more) for the performance.
Quote Jack_Pepsi 5th December 2007, 22:44
They shouldn't have killed off 939 so quickly, but they did. I can't help but think this is a rather pointless action. I'm so hoping the Phenom will pick up.
Quote airchie 6th December 2007, 00:47
I quite like the sound of these low power chips with high speeds for crazy cheap prices tbh.
HTPC anyone? :)
Quote jodah175 7th December 2007, 00:24
killing off the 6000+ and 6400+ are they nuts? its the best bang for the buck! (as far as amd is concerned)

and 939 was really good, but AM2 is better in my eyes. i just wish they would be able to come out with an intel killer.
Quote devdevil85 7th December 2007, 01:17
Quote:
Originally Posted by jodah175
i just wish they would be able to come out with an intel killer.
you're not alone, but nobody should be expecting it. As long as the architecture is cheaper than Intel's, it brings with it equivilant performance (or better in some special cases) and it will allow me to purchase a mobo that I won't have to replace 1-2 years down the road when I want to upgrade to another architecture, then I'll be happy and will continue supporting them.....'more bang for my buck' is what I'm after....
Quote jodah175 7th December 2007, 02:23
i was expecting better performance from the Phenoms, but those are bust right now. worthless if you ask me.

i mean, who wants to go and buy a $200+ mobo, to run a $260 processor at slower speeds and 'oomph' ?
Quote Amon 7th December 2007, 04:41
Quote:
Originally Posted by jodah175
i was expecting better performance from the Phenoms, but those are bust right now. worthless if you ask me.

i mean, who wants to go and buy a $200+ mobo, to run a $260 processor at slower speeds and 'oomph' ?
These guys.
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