AMD outlines CPU roadmap

November 10, 2010 | 14:15

Tags: #amd-roadmap #apu #bobcat #fusion #interlagos #komodo #krishna #llano #ontario #stars #trinity #valencia #wichita #zacate #zambezi

Companies: #amd

AMD has released the latest roadmaps for its desktop, laptop, and server CPU ranges as part of its latest report to investors and analysts, confirming its many-core and 28nm plans.

For laptops, a market in which AMD has not enjoyed much success, the company has three products due next year: the Llano Fusion APU, featuring either two or four Stars CPU cores and a DirectX 11-compatible GPU aimed at the performance and mainstream laptop market. AMD also gave further details about its upcoming Ontario and Zacate Fusion APUs, featuring single or dual Bobcat CPU cores and another DirectX 11 compatible GPU aimed at the low-end laptop and high-end netbook markets built on a 40nm process.

2012 is where things start to get interesting: as well as a 32nm Trinity Fusion APU featuring two or four next-generation Bulldozer-based CPU cores and the requisite GPU for the performance and mainstream markets, AMD will be launching the Bobcat-based Krishna and Wichita Fusion APUs. Designed for the netbook and tablet markets, the 28nm chips will be available in single, dual or quad-core flavours and bring a DirectX 11 capable GPU to the tablet market.

AMD's plans for the desktop in 2011 will see a mixture of pure CPUs and hybrid APUs depending on the market sector. Performance enthusiasts will be treated to Zambezi, a Bulldozer-based 32nm chip featuring four to eight processing cores. The mainstream market, on the other hand, will be treated to a desktop version of the Llano Fusion APU, while the company will be targeting its 40nm Ontario and Zacate Fusion APUs at the all-in-one and small form factor markets.

2012 will bring the Komodo, a next-generation Bulldozer-based chip featuring eight processing cores built around a 32nm process and a high-performance DirectX 11 compatible GPU for the performance market, while the mainstream market will get the two or four core Trinity Fusion APU. The small form factor and all-in-one market, however, gets the company's first desktop-oriented 28nm Krishna APU which features two or four enhanced Bobcat cores and the familiar DirectX 11 GPU.

For the server side, AMD is looking to gain ground in the many-core markets that it broke into with the launch of its Magny-Cours range. The two product lines, Valencia and Interlagos, target energy-efficient and mainstream server platforms with Bulldozer-based chips featuring six or eight cores in the Valencia range or up to 16 cores in the Bulldozer range. Both ranges will include dual-channel DDR3 support and HyperTransport speeds of up to 6.4GT/s.

Looking ahead to 2012, AMD is clearly betting heavily on many-core processing: the Sepang energy-efficient server line will pack up to 10 next-generation Bulldozer cores into each chip, while the performance Terramar line will manage 20 - potentially offering up to 80 physical processing cores in a quad-socket motherboard.

Missing from AMD's investor briefing, however, were firm launch dates or pricing information for any of its listed products.

Do you think that AMD's updated roadmap could lead the company to success, or will it still struggle to compete with Intel's offerings? Is AMD's concentration on its Fusion APUs in the desktop market a good idea? Share your thoughts over in the forum.
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