AMD has announced the completion of the design, or tape-out, of its native Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors.
The Next-Generation AMD Opteron processor family, featuring industry-leading performance-per-watt and outstanding virtualization capabilities has been released today by AMD. The new processors are the only x86 server processor with planned upgradeability to native quad-core within the same thermal design power envelope thus enabling customers to increase computing capacity without altering datacenter infrastructure.
In addition to launching its Next-Generation AMD Opteron processors, AMD also announced that the future native Quad-Core Opteron processors are ready for production. AMD plans to deliver to customers in mid-2007 native Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors that incorporate four processor cores on a single die of silicon.
Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors are expected to be electrical-, thermal- and socket-compatible with the Next-Generation AMD Opteron processors introduced today.
“Customers trust AMD for critical server applications, as evidenced by our record Q2 2006 AMD Opteron processor sales, and in 2006, AMD expects to double the number of AMD Opteron processor-based systems offered from global and regional tier-one OEMs,” said Randy Allen, corporate vice president, Server and Workstation Division, AMD.
“Today’s announcement represents continued innovation along the customer-directed path we blazed years ago; we provide the complete x86 processor architectural standard for others in the industry to emulate and have planned a seamless upgrade path to quad-core processors,” said Allen.
Next-Generation AMD Opteron processors represent the very latest products based on AMD’s innovative Direct Connect Architecture, the industry’s first architecture to deliver x86-based 32- and 64-bit computing and to reduce traditional front-side bus bottlenecks, offering customers processing core consistency and stability across 1-, 2-, 4- and 8-way systems. Additionally, with only two sockets for SMP planned over a seven-year period, AMD is delivering a growth strategy for its customers who want simplicity, longevity and stability across products and platforms for their datacenters.