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Intel Looks Beyond the Microchip

Dr Occult writes "BBC reports about upcoming major changes in Intel in 2006. The current Intel core, the Pentium, is on its way out and is to be replaced by a new chip called 'Core'. These new Core chips come in two flavours. Solo Core is a single core processor, and Duo Core is a dual core processor. Intel has also announced the Viiv standard. Viiv is less technology and more a shopping list of technologies. Aimed at the home entertainment market, it defines the latest generation of media centres that are capable of playing anything from MP3 songs to high-definition films."

38 of 152 comments (clear)

  1. I wonder why. by Musteval · · Score: 5, Funny

    In other news, AMD keeps looking at the microchip, because they're winning at it.

    --
    Note to mods: I'm probably being sarcastic.
  2. Technically devoid fluff piece by pchan- · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "The current Intel core, the Pentium, is on its way out and is to be replaced by a new chip called 'Core'. These new Core chips come in two flavours. Solo Core is a single core processor, and Duo Core is a dual core processor."

    How the hell did this make the front page? "Core Solo|Duo" is just what Intel calls their single, dual core processors now (remember, generic names are not worth anything to them, they must have a brand name). But is it news for nerds? Hardly.

    1. Re:Technically devoid fluff piece by lisaparratt · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I would have thought detailed information on how consumers view the machinations of evil corporations marketing departments would be vital to a nerd trying their best to do The Right Thing, i.e. stopping the rot before it takes hold.

      The hot topic around computers right now is politics. Whether you get bound or gagged by DRM, legislation and software patents, or allowed to live free in a bountious field of quality products depends on how you play the game. No one won by being logical, truthful, and right - it's all in how you play the game.

    2. Re:Technically devoid fluff piece by The_Mr_Flibble · · Score: 2, Funny

      They are paving the way for a lawsuit to stop amd from using the term core in their processor description.

    3. Re:Technically devoid fluff piece by gormanly · · Score: 4, Informative

      yep, and Core Duo and Solo are just the latest rev of the P6 core that's been in every IA32 chip except the Pentium 4, from the PPro to the Pentium M. In other words, all this news says is that Netburst is dead, and 32-bit computing lives a little longer.

      The real new chip line is coming later in the year, when Intel's new architecture comes out: see these 2 great articles by Oleg Bessonov over at Digit Life on Conroe, the future, and Yonah, the current Intel CPU.

      Of course, this is Slashdot, so about 3 people will read these through, and only 2 of those will grok 'em, but their server will get melted anyway...

    4. Re:Technically devoid fluff piece by Brazilian+Joe · · Score: 2, Funny

      It's worst than you think. The submitter is NOT to blame. He is just quoting the BBC moron which wrote that shit. I have skimmed over the article and it's there.

      Except that this not being news at all, it is a stupid article for non-techies, hmm, then YES, the submitter IS to blame. And the /. editors for letting it in.

    5. Re:Technically devoid fluff piece by mnmn · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Intel has changed a few names and are out in full force at the press conference.

      Makes me wonder if thats the best theyre going to do... a nice new website and shedding the Pentium name which is over 15 years old. Also Viiv is a list of technologies for the home media. Does that mean like, a PVR, game console, mp3 player and quite possibly a podcaster? If yes, then Viiv is a small collection of stickers.

      I'm pretty sure Intel can do more than that. With awesome fabs under their thumb, they'll find ways to get back at AMD. However they should get rid of their overzealous marketing department, and invest more in engineers. Release a quad core chip, that'll take my attention. Even better, an 8-core chip like Sun. Make a chip with the first 8MB of Ram built in as fast sram and possibly a reasonable GPU as well to make a real motherboard-on-a-chip, and sell it for under $50. Release the 10-gbit ethernet card for cheap and sell 100-gbit cards too. Release a compiler that is truly gcc-compatible, along with a Linux kernel compiled with it to prove it, and make a compiler that can really optimise code for 8+ cores with no problems. But dont give me a Solo Core Duo Core crap.

      (Typed on a Duo Core AMD machine)

      --
      "Give orange me give eat orange me eat orange give me eat orange give me you." -Nim Chimpsky
  3. quad core, oct core, etc by Anubis350 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I would assume there are plans for these, would seem to make sense based on their naming convention.
    Goodbye mhz race, hello core race (not that it hasnt been on for a while :-P).

    --
    "goodbye and hello, as always" ~Prince Corwin, from Zelazny's Amber series
    1. Re:quad core, oct core, etc by Omaze · · Score: 2, Funny

      Indeed. The core race was alive and well during the RISC vs. CISC years. At that time it was core instruction set. Before then it was probably core something else. The cores have become larger and more complex. While Intel may not have the best approach (or it may) it is important for someone to continue to redefine not just the basic instruction set that the processor runs on but what that processor set is geared to accomplish. In terms of Intel's market--the IT industry, home desktops, work desktops, laptops--there are many common functionalities that take precedence over the ability to manipulate individual bits.

      The processors have become self-aware and are now reaching out to higher level routines to better adapt themselves to the task of modern desk and laptop computing. They are recruiting Intel into their scheme to replace humans as the most powerful force on the planet.

      --
      The government itself is not stealing your liberties. Their new programs are enabling criminals who will.
  4. Not far beyond... by themysteryman73 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Ironically, all of those things listed under "Intel looks beyond the microchip" are based on microchips.

  5. the best part of TFA: by 246o1 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "All microprocessor chips have a core. The current Intel core, the Pentium, is on its way out, to be replaced by a new core, called "Core".

    It all sounds a bit like Intel's hijacking a technical term and trying to turn it into a brand name."

    I've never really thought about this, but could it lead to confusion and/or lawsuits with regards to the AMD multi-core chips? I certainly wouldn't put such a hope past Intel.

    --
    Although the moon is smaller than the earth, it is farther away.
    1. Re:the best part of TFA: by Hal_Porter · · Score: 3, Funny

      AMD Will Have To Avoid Unnecessary Capitalisation, True.

      E.g. AMD 64 X2 Dual core = OK.
      E.g. AMD 64 X2 Dual Core = OMFG Lawsuit!!!11!!!

      --
      echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;
  6. Do you you do best. by theheff · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I don't think this article is really saying much, except for the fact that Intel is going to try to put their chips in everything (DVD players, appliances, etc). From a technology/research standpoint, this kind of worries me. Does this suggest that Intel is trying to secure their future by broadening their market because they can't produce new technology? As much as I love AMD, I hope that competition continues between the two chip-makers for a long, long time.

    1. Re:Do you you do best. by antifoidulus · · Score: 2, Insightful

      It could also be that the PC market is saturating. There is no new "killer app" so to speak, on the horizon(with the possible exceptions of Vista and Duke Nukem Forever), so people who buy a new computer today should be able to do everything they want with it(email, web, and word processing) years from now.
      Intel was buoyed for a while by laptops that are sanely priced and reasonably powerful, but even they are become saturated too(esp. in the Western world). So how can Intel sell more chips? Open up new markets. It's grow or die in this market...

  7. weve already seen the core duo in action... by nicknameinthebrain · · Score: 3, Informative

    the "wonderful" macbook in all its intelness: http://www.apple.com/macbookpro/intelcoreduo.html also for those wanting to see intels take on its chip: http://www.intel.com/products/processor/coreduo/

    1. Re:weve already seen the core duo in action... by Lussarn · · Score: 3, Interesting

      While 32bit x86 chips might be new and exciting to you the rest of the world have been using it for 20 years and are phasing it out for x86-64. Good luck with your new and improved Macintosh. It will be nice to see how many years Apple will give this platform before a complete upgrade is necesarry again. My guess is, not long.

    2. Re:weve already seen the core duo in action... by bhima · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I've got a dual G5 and it's 64bit... I'm not aware of a single application, for a regular person, that even uses the '64 bit-ness' much less requires it. Come to think of it I can count on one hand the number of applications, that are useful to normal people and are not games, I've found that use any of the advanced features of the G5: the 64 bit addressed memory, the 64 bit instructions, and the Alti-vec unit.

      Don't get me wrong... I'm not an Intel fan and I'm generally disappointed by the whole MacIntel debacle... but then again I don't do the whole portable thing very much.

      I'm just saying that between OS X and Linux normal users probably wouldn't notice much of a difference a similarly clocked 486 and single core 64bit Intel machine unless they were gaming.

      --
      Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.
    3. Re:weve already seen the core duo in action... by bhima · · Score: 3, Insightful

      And what will they do with all of this new found processor goodness without: A compiler, an OS, and applications that actually will these features?

      Is there a completely 64 bit Linux? I *know* OS X isn't completely 64bit.
      Is there a commonly available compiler that can *really* automatically compile C/C++ code such that it is optimized to use the vector extensions?
      Is there a Java virtual machine that uses any advanced processor feature?

      That's my point... with the exception of Games and Video applications what applications do regular users use and what will they use that demands 64 bitness? It's not web browsing, or E-mail, or IM, or VOIP, or even that "Web 2.0" crap. I'll tell you now that the existence of the VLC media player and Handbrake don't really justify the expense of 64bit machines. And I'll also bet you that the vast majority of users seldom use any of these processor features.

      The hardware is here and it's been here for ages... I've been using various 64bit processors for at least 10 years. What isn't here and I don't seeing coming, except for games and scientific applications, is a real need for the average person. What the point of having a general purpose computer with that kind of performance if the *only* application is gaming, when you can go out and buy a special purpose console for considerably less money?

      Given that reality a fast 32bit processor will be just as good to the average user for a long time to come.

      --
      Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.
  8. Total Annihilation by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    And thus began the four thousand years long war of Core vs. ARM, depleting the resources of an entire galaxy...

  9. and loaded to the eyeballs with by pair-a-noyd · · Score: 3, Interesting

    TCP/DRM....

    No thanks. Buh-bye Intel. I recently made the switch to AMD but I fear that will be short lived.

    As much as I despise any product from China, I fear that some of us freedom rebels will have to resort to underground TCP/DRM-free chips.
    I think they were working on a new chip called the Dragon or something like that.
    I don't care about watching HD anything on my PC. I don't listen to music on my PC.

    But I'll be damned if I'll be forced to replace all my stuff just because Mega-Corp(tm) decides that we all must comply and submit.

    Freedom Fries and all that stupidity. It's all for our own good you know.

    I think they should rename the new TCP/DRM chips the "INGSOC Chip"..

  10. it's NOT news. by eshefer · · Score: 2, Informative

    it's probably the worst story submision in the history of this site.

    it is SO clueless - it is obvious that the submitor and (much worse) the submiting editor - are both clueless and have no buisness posting anything on a tech site. the headline "intel looks beyond the microchip" is missleading. I know that it hints about intels foray into platform, rather then componant solutions - but that IS'NT evident in the story submition.

    VIIV and core have been ALL OVER the tech sites for two months (at least) - there is simply nothing new in this story.

  11. Viiv - shear genius by AmiMoJo · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well done Intel - spend millions building up the Pentium brand, then throw it away for something no-one can pronounce.

    Also, well done for adding to the general confusion by calling your new chips "Core". You must be so prowd of your marketing deparment.

    --
    const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
    SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    1. Re:Viiv - shear genius by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      They should call the new multi-core pentiums for, uhm:

      Plentium!

  12. The next paradigm by danratherfoe · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I think that the number of cores is going to be the "megahertz" of the 2010s (no prizes for making this observation). It seems that Moore's law continues on, but the limits of electronics prevent higher clock rates so now it is all about adding cores (in its original form, Moore's law refers to a doubling of the number of circuits per linear dimension). What I would really like to see is a chip with about 512 80486 cores on it ... that would be sweet.

  13. Riddle me this by sane? · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Surely "Core" is a generic term?

    Therefore sure it should be impossible to have a valid trademark? Remember the reasoning behind "Pentium" rather than "586"?

    So what is the "TM" doing on it?

    1. Re:Riddle me this by theorbtwo · · Score: 2, Informative

      "TM" means that they claim it's trademarked. It doesn't mean that it neccessarly is a valid trademark, that anyone in authority has looked at it and said "this is trademarkable", or even that they filled out a form to trademark it. That's the difference between TM and ®.

    2. Re:Riddle me this by tokul · · Score: 2, Informative

      Intel uses "Intel® Core(TM) Duo" and "Intel® Core(TM) Solo". Not Solo Core and Duo Core terms. I am pretty sure that they will use "Intel Core" name for their CPUs.

    3. Re:Riddle me this by Vellmont · · Score: 3, Informative


      Surely "Core" is a generic term?

      Therefore sure it should be impossible to have a valid trademark? Remember the reasoning behind "Pentium" rather than "586"?

      So what is the "TM" doing on it?


      My guess it what they've actually trademarked is "Duo Core" and "Solo Core". Notice how those are strange terms like duo, solo, and not common english expressions like dual core, single core that everyone uses to describe multi-core processors. Even Intel can't think they can trademark the word core and get away with it.

      --
      AccountKiller
  14. Ol Shakespeare: "What's in a name..." by Ancient_Hacker · · Score: 3, Interesting
    So you think Intel tossed out all the Pentium designs, technology, processes, algorithms, and employees and started from scratch? Not likely.

    This "change" is more likely a marketing thing. If the marketing folks don't change everything every few years, they start to look idle.

  15. the future by wwmedia · · Score: 2, Interesting

    theyll have a hard time marketing their CPUS in few years, and will end up with a mess on their hands, while AMD "leaps ahead"

    Solo Core -current
    Duo Core -current
    Quadra Core?
    Penta Core? or Viiv Core?
    Octa Core?
    Hexa Core?

    as the numbers of cores increase, and they will! the names will get more rediculous, and harder for the average John Doe to pronounce

  16. No they are not changing technologies by twfry · · Score: 2, Informative

    They are just changing brand names. They are dropping the Pentium brand name because it is 10+ years old and switching to a brand name that highlights only how many cores each processor has. The underlying tech is the exact same.

    Thought slashdot editors were nerds and would know this.

  17. Marketing BS & "journalism" at its very worst! by burnttoy · · Score: 2

    The "Current Pentium Core"... WTF!?

    The "Pentium" now bares NO resemblance to the old 120Mhz thing I have at home! The PPro, PII, PII share some heritage (barely). The original Pentium stands alone (still a good design IMHO). P4 shares no heritage with the earlier chips and has had major changes over the last few years (the pipeline and trace cache have changed a lot).

    I didn't realise Intel were still selling the old Pentium core at all... Hmmm... Something smells like BS.

    It's time the BBC got some decent, technically competent journos on board. Sheesh. I read more tech crap on there than just about anywhere.

    Yours Narked,
          Major Frigme Poppleheat Fresharse the Third (Mrs)

    --
    Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
  18. that's nothing! by utnapistim · · Score: 3, Funny

    I am throwing away my keyboard and replacing it with a new device called the Keyboard!

    --
    Tie two birds together: although they have four wings, they cannot fly. (The blind man)
  19. It's all marketing by DarkNemesis618 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    It's probably just a way to try to regain market that AMD has taken away from them. Intel for the most part dominates the notebook processor business, but over the past couple years has lost a sizeable amout of market in the desktop industry to AMD. Intel is probably trying to start fresh so to speak. The Pentium chip has been around for 10+ years now, and the Pentium 4 chip has also been around for a couple years. Some people, more the "not so computer people" could equate that length of time with obsolete, although that is not entirely true. While I'm sure Intel could use a better naming sense, I'm not suprised that they're trying to reshape their image. I switched to AMD when I built my desktop computer last April and I'm happy I did. In my opinion, AMD is better designed and performs better for my needs. If more people follow suit and see the things the way I do, which seems to be the way things are heading, Intel could be in some trouble. This is probably just Intel's way of fighting back to regain the market for desktop processors again.

    --
    What's the matter, James? No glib remark? No pithy comeback?
  20. Pronounciation. by Hillgiant · · Score: 3, Funny
    It's not that hard to pronounce.

    "Viiv"

    See? No problem.

    --
    -
  21. Brilliant Marketing Ploy . . . by Dausha · · Score: 3, Funny

    Intel is merely capitalizing on Apple's move to their chipset. After all, since the CPU is the center of the computer, the new Intel processors will be the "Apple's Core!" Ha! Hah!

    Thank you! I'll be here all weekend. Don't forget to tip your waitress.

    --
    What those who want activist courts fear is rule by the people.
  22. Fluff article, no details, lots of bitter people by whistlingtony · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Wow... Lots of bitter people in here... The article doesn't help much, as it gives practically no interesting details.

    The Core chips are Yonah. Frankly, they're one of the more interesting products to come out of Intel. Lets face it, the P4 core was.... Hot? Heheheh. Yonah is based off the M chips. They're fast, efficient, and low power. Expect multiple cores to be the future. As we all know, it's getting harder to get more computing power from pure speed. Tacking on "cores" is the wave of the future. Both Intel and AMD have already stated they'll be making 4 core chips... This is a Good Thing for us consumers!

    Centrino is/was a great success for the company. VIIV is an attempt to repeat this. VIIV is, like Centrino, a whole package (chip+chipset with features). VIIV actually has some interesting bits to it. It's got an instant on/off feature. It's got decent onboard sound with composite out for connection to your stereo. It's low power, especially when compared to a P4 system. Throw wireless in there, all the bells and whistles, and you've got a chipset and chip made for quietly sitting in the living room.

    I don't know about you, but i'm a silence freak. This fills me with an enthusiasm I haven't had in a while.

    To top that off, Intel went and made deals with Media Folk to get content to send to the VIIV computers. I'm fairly certain they left the DRM up to MS. This also excites me. Not for the content. I don't watch TV, and could care less about it on my computer. However, someone needed to beat the media people over the head. Intel is doing that, and they deserve some props for that. No one else was doing it....

    In Summary... I'm excited. You're all bitter. That article sucked.

  23. Viiv by CaptnMArk · · Score: 2, Funny

    Great quote from wikipedia: DRM features to combat copyright infringement and consumer rights.