Intel is rumored to have shelved the iteration of its upcoming Z390 Express chipset as earlier publicized, the one which had certain new hardware features. It could now re-brand the existing Z370 Express as Z390 Express and probably bolster its reference design with heftier CPU VRM specifications, to cope better with its upcoming 8-core LGA1151 processors. The Z370 Express is similar in feature-set to the brink of being identical to its predecessor, the Z270 Express. This move could impact certain new hardware features that were on the anvil, such as significantly more USB 3.1 gen 2/gen1 ports directly from the PCH, integrated WiFi MAC, and Intel SmartSound technology, which borrowed certain concepts from edge-computing to implement native speech-to-text conversion directly on the chipset, for improved voice control latency and reduced CPU overhead.

The reasons behind this move could be a combination of last-minute cost-benefit analyses by Intel's bean-counters, and having to mass-produce Z390 Express on the busier-than-expected 14 nm silicon fabrication node, as opposed to current 300-series chipsets being built on the 22 nm node that's nearing the end of its life-cycle. Intel probably needed the switch to 14 nm for the significant increases in transistor-counts arising from the additional USB controllers, the WiFi MAC, and the SmartSound logic. Intel probably doesn't have the vacant 14 nm node capacity needed to mass-produce the Z390 yet, as its transition to future processes such as 10 nm and 7 nm are still saddled with setbacks and delays; and redesigning the Z390 (as we knew it) on 22 nm may have emerged unfeasible (i.e. the chip may have ended up too big and/or too hot). The Z390 Express chipset block-diagram, which we published in our older article has been quietly removed from Intel's website. It's also rumored that this move could force AMD to rethink its plans to launch its Z490 socket AM4 chipset.

A report straight out of DigiTimes, citing industry sources, says that Intel has discontinued production of its H310 chipset. The decision has apparently stemmed from lower than expected production capacity for chipsets on the 14 nm process. When that happens, production focus must shift to a specific part: in this case, Intel obviously went with the option with the lower opportunity cost, and increased production of the Z370 chipset: the one with the increased feature-set, and, most likely than not, higher margins.

After a single month of tight supply for the H310 chipset, motherboard makers are now forced to use Intel's B360 chipset in their more cost-conscious options as well - a part which carries higher cost, and thus precludes manufacturers from hitting all the price points they usually would with a fully vertical Intel chipset lineup. Speculation has emerged claiming Intel suspended the supply of H310 because they have chosen to conduct a manufacturing process change from the tight-supply 14 nm (used across almost all of Intel's production stack, both consumer and enterprise) to a 22 nm fabrication technology. Further speculation places this constrained 14 nm supply as existent because of the delay in advancing to 10 nm, a process that Intel expected to be producing in volume by now (and since a while back, to be fair).

Israeli Economy Minister Eli Cohen today revealed that after talks with Intel, the company shared plans for a $5 billion investment in its Kiryat Gat plant, located in southern Israel. The Kiryat Gat plant currently features tools and manufacturing facilities that allow only 22 nm chips to be produced - definitely not cutting edge, but still somewhat relevant in the semiconductor market for simpler technologies. Intel's investment would bring this plant's capabilities to 10 nm manufacturing levels. The minister further stated that Intel will begin its investment this year, and was looking towards a full 2020 payoff with increased manufacturing capabilities. Naturally, with investment comes tax opportunities and government incentives, and Intel is expected to receive a 10% grant from the Israeli government to help it in this investments' funding.

Intel co-founder Gordon Moore's claim that transistor counts in microprocessors can be doubled with 2 years, by means of miniaturizing silicon lithography is beginning to buckle. In its latest earnings release, CEO Brian Krzanich said that the company's recent product cycles marked a slowing down of its "tick-tock" product development from 2 years to close to 2.5 years. With the company approaching sub-10 nm scales, it's bound to stay that way.

To keep Moore's Law alive, Intel adopted a product development strategy it calls tick-tock. Think of it as a metronome that give rhythm to the company. Each "tock" marks the arrival of a new micro-architecture, and each "tick" marks its miniaturization to a smaller silicon fab process. Normally, each year is bound to see one of the two in alternation.

GLOBALFOUNDRIES today launched a new semiconductor technology developed specifically to meet the ultra-low-power requirements of the next generation of connected devices. The "22FDX" platform delivers FinFET-like performance and energy-efficiency at a cost comparable to 28 nm planar technologies, providing an optimal solution for the rapidly evolving mainstream mobile, Internet-of-Things (IoT), RF connectivity and networking markets.

While some applications require the ultimate performance of three-dimensional FinFET transistors, most wireless devices need a better balance of performance, power consumption and cost. 22FDX provides the best path for cost-sensitive applications by leveraging the industry's first 22nm two-dimensional, fully-depleted silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI) technology. It offers industry's lowest operating voltage at 0.4 volt, enabling ultra-low dynamic power consumption, less thermal impact, and smaller end-product form-factors. The 22FDX platform delivers a 20 percent smaller die size and 10 percent fewer masks than 28nm, as well as nearly 50 percent fewer immersion lithography layers than foundry FinFET.

"The 22FDX platform enables our customers to deliver differentiated products with the best balance of power, performance and cost," said Sanjay Jha, chief executive officer of GLOBALFOUNDRIES. "In an industry first, 22FDX provides real-time system software control of transistor characteristics: the system designer can dynamically balance power, performance, and leakage. Additionally, for RF and analog integration, the platform delivers best scaling combined with highest energy efficiency."

Intel's Core "Skylake" processor lineup, built on the company's swanky new 14 nanometer fab process, drew heads to its rather high 95W TDP for quad-core parts such as the Core i7-6700K and Core i5-6600K, even though their 22 nm predecessors, such as the i7-4770K and the i5-4670K run cooler, at 84W TDP. A new leaked slide explains the higher TDP. Apparently, Intel is going all-out with its integrated graphics implementation on Core "Skylake" chips, including onboard graphics that leverage eDRAM caches. The company is promising as much as 50% higher integrated graphics performance over "Haswell."

Although the chips have high rated TDP, the overall energy efficiency presents a different story. SoCs based on "Skylake" will draw as much as 60% lower power than "Haswell" based ones, translating into 35% longer HD video playback on portable devices running these chips. Intel's graphics performance push is driven by an almost sudden surge in display resolutions, with standards such as 4K (3840 x 2160) entering mainstream, and 5K (5120 x 2880) entering the enthusiast segment. Intel's design goal is to supply the market with a graphics solution that makes the two resolutions functional on desktop and video, if not gaming.

Intel topped off its value dual-core processor lineup with a new energy-efficient part, the Core i3-4170T. One of the last chips to be based on the 22 nm "Haswell" silicon, this chip offers two cores with HyperThreading enabling four logical CPUs, 3.20 GHz clock speeds, 3 MB, and a TDP of just 35W (standard i3-41xx series feature 54W TDP). The i3-4170T is priced roughly on par with the current series-leading chip, the i3-4160. A little later this month, Intel will unveil the i3-4170, which will be the fastest part in the series, featuring 3.70 GHz clock speeds.

Intel Corporation today introduced the Intel Xeon processor E5-2600/1600 v3 product families to address the requirements of diverse workloads and the rapidly evolving needs of data centers. The new processor families include numerous enhancements that provide performance increases of up to 3x over the previous generation, world-class energy efficiency and enhanced security. To facilitate the explosive demand for software defined infrastructure (SDI), the processors expose key metrics, through telemetry, which enable the infrastructure to deliver services with the best performance, resilience and optimized total cost of ownership.

The processors will be used in servers, workstations, storage and networking infrastructure to power a broad set of workloads such as data analytics, high-performance computing, telecommunications and cloud-based services, as well as back-end processing for the Internet of Things.

The industry's leading brand, MSI, has officially released a new BIOS that allows its X79 chipset motherboards to support Intel's newest 22 nm LGA2011 processors (codename: Ivy Bridge-E) today. Users can experience the powerful performance from the newest 22 nm LGA2011 processors immediately by simply updating the BIOS from MSI's official website.

Intel Corporation today introduced a portfolio of datacenter products and technologies for cloud service providers looking to drive greater efficiency and flexibility into their infrastructure to support a growing demand for new services and future innovation.

Server, network and storage infrastructure is evolving to better suit an increasingly diverse set of lightweight workloads, creating the emergence of microserver, cold storage and entry networking segments. By optimizing technologies for specific workloads, Intel will help cloud providers significantly increase utilization, drive down costs and provide compelling and consistent experiences to consumers and businesses.

Intel made its newest Core i7 high-end desktop (HEDT) platform official with the launch of three new socket LGA2011 processors based on the swanky new 22 nm "Ivy Bridge-E" silicon. The launch includes the top-end Core i7-4960X Extreme Edition, priced at $990, followed by the Core i7-4930K at $555, and Core i7-4820K at $310. Expect a 10 percent markup across the board for these prices. Of these, the i7-4960X and i7-4930K are six-core parts, while the i7-4820K is quad-core.

The Core i7-4960X features a CPU clock speed of 3.60 GHz, with up to 4.00 GHz Turbo Boost frequency, 15 MB of L3 cache, and HyperThreading, which enables 12 logical CPUs for the OS to deal with. The i7-4930K clocks in at 3.40 GHz, with up to 3.90 GHz Turbo Boost, 12 MB of L3 cache, and HyperThreading. The i7-4820K, at its price point, can be extremely inviting for people with their minds set on a Core i7-4770K. It features 3.70 GHz clocks with up to 3.90 GHz Turbo Boost, 10 MB of L3 cache, and HyperThreading, enabling 8 logical CPUs. All three parts feature quad-channel DDR3 integrated memory controller with native support for DDR3-1866, 48-lane PCI-Express gen 3.0 root complexes, and 130W rated TDPs.

Slim and light, MSI's GP60 and GP70 presents better performance of the latest laptops for online gaming competitions. Under the hood, these NBs meet your need for machines that with good performance with better gaming experience. In addition, they sport envelope-pushing SteelSeries gaming keyboards, unique Audio Boost for headsets sound enhancement solution. Easy to Take and powerful, these NBs will give you the furious advantage in HD gaming competitions. MSI has received high marks for its high-end gaming laptops, the good performance but compact gaming design in new gaming notebooks. They featured Intel's 4th Generation Quad Core processor and new Generation NVIDIA GeForce GT 740M discrete graphics. Specially designed to meet the demands of online gamers around the world.

The business end of Intel's 4th generation Core desktop processor family, Core i3 and Pentium Dual-Core, are dressing up for work. Intel reportedly gave final touches to retail pricing of at least three new Core i3 parts, a mid-range Core i5 part, a high-end Core i7 part, and three Pentium ones. Intel's Core i3 "Haswell" desktop processor lineup begins with the Core i3-4130 dual-core processor, featuring 3.40 GHz clock speed, no Turbo Boost, HyperThreading, and 3 MB of shared L3 cache, priced at US $136.85. It is followed by the Core i3-4330, which ups clock speed to 3.50 GHz, shared L3 cache to 4 MB; and a $154.75 price-tag. The Core i3 "Haswell" family is led by the Core i3-4340, with its 3.60 GHz clock speed, and 4 MB of L3 cache.

Intel also plans a mid-range quad-core Core i5 part, the i5-4440, which features 3.10 GHz clocks, 3.40 GHz Turbo Boost, no HyperThreading, and 6 MB of shared L3 cache. It is priced at $197.26. Intel also rectified its high-end Core i7 lineup with the new Core i7-4771, which features 3.50 GHz clocks, 3.90 GHz Turbo Boost, HyperThreading, and 8 MB of shared L3 cache. This part, as reported earlier, is designed to displace the Core i7-4770 (non-K), and is priced at $333.77 a piece.

Given that Intel's 4th generation Core "Haswell" family is based on existing 22 nm manufacturing processes, a market-scale transition between 3rd generation Core "Ivy Bridge" and it, is not as cumbersome as transition between two generations spanning across different processes. Intel plans to retire some of its best selling Core and Pentium LGA1155 parts by the end of September, to make room for Core and Pentium "Ivy Bridge" and "Haswell" parts in their place.

To begin with, a large number of Pentium and Celeron parts, namely G860, G645, G645T, G550T, G555, G645, G630, G620, G622, G870, G860T, G640, G630T, G640T, G550, G540T, G460, G530, and G530T, will be marked "EOL" (end of life), and will no longer be available to distributors and OEMs. From its Core i3 "Sandy Bridge" lineup, Core i3-2100, i3-2125, i3-2130, i3-2120T, and i3-2102 get the axe. From its Core i5 "Sandy Bridge" series, the i5-2390T gets marked EOL.

Another day, another Intel leak and a few surprises as well. During the last few days we covered Intel's desktop roadmap for the next twelve months, bringing you news and insights on Intel's plans for the aforementioned time interval. Today we bring you news on what's to follow in the second half of 2014, specifically, on Intel's Premium Desktop plans for the interval, namely Haswell-E, DDR4 and the X99 PCH.

Haswell-E will be Intel's last and best offering using the 22 nm fabrication process, it will come in two versions, core count wise, 8 core part(s) as well as 6 core part(s) with hyper-threading enabled, therefore, boasting no less that 16 execution threads for the 8 core chips and 12 execution threads for the 6 core version(s). Judging by that alone, Haswell-E should constitute a far superior upgrade over Ivy Bridge-E, compared to what the latter will be in relation to Sandy Bridge-E, Haswell-E offering two additional physical cores that translate into four additional execution threads. The new chips will boast 2.5 MB of L3 Cache per core, summing up to 20 MB total L3 cache for the 8 core parts. TDP will remain in the same neighborhood it was in the case of its predecessors, around 130-140 W.

We know from older reports that Intel will refresh its socket LGA2011 HEDT (high-end desktop) product family with three new parts, based on the new 22 nm "Ivy Bridge-E" silicon. A table detailing their clock speeds was leaked to the web. In addition, we got details of what Intel's entry-level Core i3 "Haswell" line of dual-core processors would look like, specs-wise. The Ivy Bridge-E silicon, is to a large part an optical shrink of the Sandy Bridge-E silicon, with a few improvements. The chip is fabricated on Intel's 22 nm node with tri-gate transistors, the IMC natively supports DDR3-1866 MHz, the PCI-Express root complex is gen 3.0 certified, and the CPUID features the new RdRAND instruction set. Aside from these clock speeds are increased across the board, although TDP isn't lowered from the previous 130W.

Leading the Core i7 "Ivy Bridge-E" pack is the Core i7-4960X Extreme Edition, with its 3.60 GHz core, 4.00 GHz maximum Turbo Boost, unlocked base-clock multiplier, and 15 MB L3 cache. This six-core chip will command a four-figure price. Next up, is the Core i7-4930K, with 3.40 GHz core, 3.90 GHz maximum Turbo Boost, unlocked base-clock multiplier, and 12 MB L3 cache. This chip could be 30-40 percent cheaper than the i7-4960X. The cheapest of the lot, though, is the Core i7-4820K. This quad-core part, interestingly, features unlocked base-clock multiplier, unlike its predecessor, the i7-3820. Perhaps Intel didn't want a repeat of Core i7-3770K cannibalizing the i7-3820. The i7-4820K features 3.70 GHz core, 3.90 GHz Turbo Boost, and 10 MB of L3 cache. The chip may be priced in the same range as the i7-4770K. All three parts feature quad-channel DDR3 integrated memory controllers, with native support for DDR3-1866.

GIGABYTE rolled out the C1007UN-D mini-ITX motherboard, for entry-level desktops. It ships with an Intel Celeron 1007U BGA processor hard-wired to the board, with a compatible fan-heatsink pre-installed. Based on the 22 nm "Ivy Bridge" micro-architecture, the 1007U is a dual-core chip, clocked at 1.50 GHz, with 2 MB of L3 cache, and 17W TDP. Backing the chip on this motherboard is Intel's NM70 chipset.

The C1007UN-D from GIGABYTE features two DDR3 DIMM slots supporting up to 16 GB of dual-channel memory. Storage interfaces consist of one SATA 6 Gb/s and two SATA 3 Gb/s internal ports, and an eSATA 3 Gb/s port. Legacy PCI makes for the lone expansion slot. Connectivity includes two gigabit Ethernet interfaces, 6-channel HD audio, six USB 2.0 ports, an RS232 COM port, LPT (by header), and PS/2. Display outputs include D-Sub (VGA) and HDMI. GIGABYTE did not release pricing information, but considering the CPU itself is priced around $90, we expect this board to be priced around $150.

Intel introduced a pair of new dual-core ultra-low voltage processors, the Core i5-3439Y and Core i7-3689Y, based on the current 22 nm "Ivy Bridge" architecture. The two feature a stunning 13W TDP, and are designed for cool Ultrabooks, with minimal cooling. The Core i5-3439Y features a nominal clock speed of 1.50 GHz, with 2.30 GHz maximum Turbo Boost, HyperThreading enabling four logical CPUs, 3 MB of L3 cache, and an SDP (scenario driven power) of just 7W. It is priced at US $250. The Core i7-3689Y, on the other side, features the same 1.50 GHz nominal clock speed, but a higher maximum Turbo Boost frequency of 2.60 GHz, and 4 MB of L3 cache. Other features are identical between the two. The i7-3689Y is priced at $362.

Intel Corporation executives held a press conference today to outline a plan to accelerate new mobile device experiences across the company's growing portfolio of smartphone, tablet and Ultrabook offerings.

The announcements included a new smartphone platform for emerging markets, details on a forthcoming 22 nm quad-core SoC for tablets, and more personal and intuitive Ultrabook devices in innovative convertible designs were outlined by Mike Bell, vice president and general manager of the Mobile and Communications Group, and Kirk Skaugen, vice president and general manager of the PC Client Group at Intel.

Intel's next-generation Atom processor platform, codenamed "Bay Trail" doesn't arrive before 2014, but that's not enough to stop the company from talking at great lengths about it. A new presentation intended for Intel's pals in the PC industry was leaked on German tech-forum 3DCenter.org, and reveals quite a bit more about the platform than the Bay Trail-T we already know about.

The first two slides (below) detail key scoring points of the platform over its predecessor, the "Cedar Trail." These include a true single-chip SoC (with complete integration of the chipset into the processor die), being built on the 22 nm Tri-gate transistor fab process, up to four x86-64 cores with out-of-order execution capabilities, 7th generation Intel graphics that features DirectX 11 and supports resolutions as high as 2560 x 1600 pixels, a native USB 3.0 controller, and support for DDR3L memory, that allows device makers to do away with DIMM/SO-DIMM modules to conserve board foot-print, using smaller, space-optimized DRAM chips on the main PCB.

CPU cooler manufacturer Arctic (aka Arctic Cooling) may have inadvertently leaked a very long list of 4th generation Intel Core processors based on its LGA1150 socket. Longer than any currently posted lists of Core "Haswell" processors, the leak includes model numbers of nine Core i7, seventeen Core i5, five Core i3, and two Pentium models. Among the Core i7 models are already known i7-4770K flagship chip, i7-4770S, and a yet-unknown i7-4765T. The Core i5 processor list is exhaustive, and it appears that Intel wants to leave no price-point unattended. The Core i5-4570K could interest enthusiasts. In comparison to the Core i5 list, the LGA1150 Core i3 list is surprisingly short, indicating Intel is serious about phasing out dual-core chips. The Pentium LGA1150 list is even shorter.

The list of LGA1150 processor models appears to have been leaked in the data-sheets of one of its coolers, in the section that lists compatible processors. LGA1150 appears to have the same exact cooler mount-hole spacing as LGA1155 and LGA1156 sockets, and as such upgrading CPU cooler shouldn't be on your agenda. Intel's 4th generation Core processor family is based on Intel's spanking new "Haswell" micro-architecture, which promises higher performance per-core, and significantly faster integrated graphics over previous generation. The new chips will be built on Intel's now-mature 22 nm silicon fabrication process. The new chips will begin to roll out in the first-half of 2013.

In an interview with DigiTimes, ASUS general manager of motherboard business Joe Hsieh commented on reports of Intel abandoning CPU sockets in favor of processors being hardwired to motherboards in BGA packages. Hsieh said that the issue will not be as bad as people think and Intel could find a strategy that allows both soldered and socketed processors to be sold, which is much like today, except that hardwired processors are limited to notebooks (Core i3 and i5 processors in the BGA1224 package) and low-end Atom-driven desktop motherboards.

What lends Hsieh's statement weight, apart from the fact that he leads the biggest PC motherboard design team, is that Intel recently denied those reports, saying it would provide socketed CPUs for "the foreseeable future." Last month, Japanese publication PC Watch, credited for generally accurate tech predictions based on information at hand, reported that following its 22 nm Core "Haswell" CPU family, Intel could transform its entry-, mainstream-, and performance-segment client CPUs to hardwired BGA packages, probably leaving socketed CPUs only to HEDT (high-end desktop) and enterprise Xeon processor lines. Other PC motherboard vendors DigiTimes spoke with echoed ASUS' opinion, they don't believe Intel could "suddenly" completely change the way processors are sold to consumers.

Intel's 22 nanometer tri-gate technology, which goes into building today's 3rd Generation Core desktop and notebook processors, and soon the entry-level Pentium and Celeron ones, will make it to mobile SoCs (systems on chips), which will drive battery life-sensitive devices such as smartphones and tablets. Intel announced that development of such chips is in progress, speaking at the 2012 International Electron Devices Meeting. The new 22 nm SoCs could feature anywhere between 20 to 65 percent higher performance than today's 32 nm low-power chips. The new chips will allow Intel to take on mid- and high-grade ARM SoCs. Intel didn't go into the specifics.

With the dawn of 2013, and no catastrophes in sight, Intel is going ahead with its usual business of phasing out old processor models, and making way for new ones. By the end of 2012, Intel will stop taking orders for several processor models mostly based on the older 32 nm "Sandy Bridge" silicon. These include chips such as the Core i7-2700K, Core i5-2310, Core i3-2105, Pentium G440, and surprisingly, an early demise of the 22 nm Core i5-3450, which is cannibalized by the Core i5-3470 at the same price point. Pentium G870, G645 and G645T as well as Celeron G555, G550 and G550T are the other chips on the chopping block.

Come 2013, Intel will release Pentium and Celeron series processors based on its 22 nm "Ivy Bridge" micro-architecture. These include the Pentium G2130, G2020 and G2020T and Celeron G1620, G1610 and G1610T. In the mobile (notebook) CPU sphere, Intel will launch dual-core "Ivy Bridge" chips to layer out its Ultrabook product segment. These include the Core i7-3687, Core i5-3437U, Celeron 1037U, 1007U, 1020M and 1000M. In March, the company is expected to launch its 4th generation Core "Haswell" line of processors.

As confirmed by some freshly-leaked slides, 2014 will see Intel bring some new guns to the fight with ARM, including Bay Trail-T, the successor of Clover Trail and the first Atom platform to take advantage of the 22 nm manufacturing process.

The star of Bay Trail-T is the Valleyview SoC which will feature four (out-of-order) Silvermont cores clocked at up to 2.1 GHz (delivering up to 60% higher performance than the Clover Trail chip), a two-channel LPDDR3 memory controller, an upgraded video decoder, support for resolutions up to 2560 x 1600 pixels, and a new GPU boasting DirectX 11 capabilities and offering up to a 3x performance boost over Clover Trail.

Devices based on Bay Trail-T are expected to have a standby battery life of 20 days and would last for 11 hours of continuous video playback, before needing to be charged.