Kicking-off the industry's multi-core PC era, Intel has introduced the Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5300 and Intel Core 2 Extreme Quad-Core processor families, delivering four cores or computing "brains" inside a single microprocessor. All new processors promise superior speed and responsiveness for workstations and general purpose servers, as also for other segments such as digital media creation, high-end gaming, etc.
At the launch, Paul Otellini, President and CEO of Intel, said, "The capabilities of Quad-Core microprocessors will bring new possibilities for Science, Entertainment, and Business. I'm incredibly proud of what Intel's employees have achieved with these new products."
The new Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5300 processors deliver up to 50 percent faster performance, with the same power consumption and cost as Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5100 processors that were launched less than 5 months ago.
Four such Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5300 processors have been launched, with clock speeds ranging from 1.60GHz to 2.66GHz; front side bus (FSB) speeds ranging from 1066MHz to 1333MHz; and thermal design power (TDP) of either 80 Watts or performance-optimized 120 Watt option.
Promising to be the world's best desktop processor for multimedia applications, the Intel Core 2 Extreme Quad-Core processor QX6700 is up to 80 percent faster than the company s current Intel Core 2 Extreme Processor X6800.
The QX6700 is the world's first Quad-Core desktop processor meant for unmatched, highly threaded performance. It is available at 2.66GHz with a 1066MHz FSB, and runs on Intel's existing 975X Express chipset family.
Besides, Intel plans to offer a mainstream Quad-Core processor, beginning Q1 of 2007 that will be an ideal choice for processor-intensive, highly threaded programs such as Entertainment, Gaming, and Multimedia activities.
The configuration and prices of the new processors are as follows:
Quad-Core Intel Xeon processor X5355 2.66GHz 1333MHz 8MB 120W: $1172
Quad-Core Intel Xeon processor E5345 2.33GHz 1333MHz 8MB 80W: $851
Quad-Core Intel Xeon processor E5320 1.86GHz 1066MHz 8MB 80W: $690
Quad-Core Intel Xeon processor E5310 1.60GHz 1066MHz 8MB 80W: $455
Intel Core 2 Extreme quad-core processor QX6700 2.66GHz 1066MHz 8MB 130W: $999
