Q3'05 AMD Roadmap; DDR2 and New Sockets for AMD

The Desktop

Besides the single core M2 processors, we also have the dual core parts, codenamed Windsor. We have a 4800+ part for socket M2, as well as parts greater than or equal to 5000+ for both socket 939 and M2. As with the single core variants, we see two likely possibilities. The first is that the M2 parts will directly match the 939 parts in features, making the 4800+ a 2.4 GHz 1MB per core design. On the other hand, improvements in the performance of the platform through the use of DDR2 may allow AMD to use a 2.4 GHz 512K part for the 4800+. Part of the attractiveness of such a change is that the 2x512K parts would have a smaller die size, decreasing the manufacturing costs. Time will tell what AMD's precise plans are, and at present all we have are model names with which to speculate.

The last addition to the performance desktop market is a new FX model, the FX-59. While in the past we have speculated that AMD would switch the FX to a dual core design, the roadmap instead indicates that the FX-59 is intended to use a San Diego core running at 3.0 GHz. Other details in the roadmap show that AMD intends for the FX line to offer top single core performance. AMD market the FX line as being "ideal for 3D games and single-threaded applications." The X2 line on the other hand is "designed for sophisticated power users who run multiple processor intensive applications simultaneously," and is "ideal for digital content creation as well as for listening and viewing entertainment." It seems pretty clear from such statements that the FX line will remain single core for a while longer.

M2 isn't just a switch to DDR2 memory support, though. Besides DDR2, AMD indicates that the Orleans and Windsor processors will also have "Security and Virtualization" features. Previously codenamed Pacifica, the virtualization technology adds hardware support that allows a system to run multiple operating systems simultaneously. It was possible to do this in the past with such tools as VMware, but hardware support should dramatically improve performance. The security technology mentioned is likely to be very similar to Intel's LaGrande Technology and was code named Presidio. Whether or not you'll need a tin foil hat to operate your computer is yet undecided.

You'll notice that socket 754 is no longer even represented in the desktop arena. There are a couple parts that will work on socket 754 motherboards, but they are no longer marketed as mainstream or performance desktop processors. That brings us to the desktop Sempron processors.

There are quite a few upcoming parts in the value desktop computing sector. Launching very soon will be the Ex stepping of the Palermo core, which will add - or rather enable - 64-bit extensions on all the Sempron parts. All of the presently available Sempron parts are for socket 754 (and even a few older socket A models that are being phased out), but we also have Sempron parts targeting socket 939 that should be launching any time now. Information contained within the roadmap actually seems to indicate that 3000+ and 3200+ Sempron parts have already started shipping for socket 939, though we haven't seen any. It could be that they are going straight to OEMs, as the same parts show up as DTR (Desktop Replacement) notebook processors.

Looking forward to 2006, we still have a few more speed bumps to the Sempron line on both sockets with the 3500+, 3600+, and 3700+ parts. Somewhat interesting to note is that the Sempron 3700+ will apparently be a 2.2 GHz 256K cache part on both sockets - normally AMD has rated the equivalent clock speend and cache socket 939 parts slightly higher than socket 754 parts due to the dual-channel memory support of 939.

Besides the above value processors, we also have some information on the upcoming M2 value processor. Code named Manila, the processor won't support the virtualization and security features that other M2 processors have. That isn't too surprising, as frankly we expect virtualization technologies to be far more useful for the performance sector. However, it will support dual channel DDR2; typically we don't see dual channel support on value processors, so that's a welcome change.