The guys over at Hexus.net, have got hold of information that shows details of three new quad core processors with a thermal design power (TDP) of only 65W. The interesting thing is that it seems Intel have still not yet given up the LGA775 socket despite it being superceded. These are the lowest TDP quad cores from Intel to date, based on a 45nm manufacturing process, and in theory using up to 30W less power than current quad core processors, it shows a step in the right direction. Unfortunately it cannot be all good news, as it seems that the expected prices for these are approximatly $100 more than the similarly clocked 95W counterparts.

Bloomberg reports that Intel is planning on releasing a new, higher-capacity solid state drive, which will provide users with up to 320GB of storage capacity. In Q4 this year, the company will begin selling a total of eight new drives with capacity of 320GB, that will be part of Intel's Extreme and Mainstream SSD series. The chips used for these drives will be build using 32-nanometer production technology, Intel's most advanced manufacturing method for the time being. The source also clamins that Intel has already contacted its partners and informed them for the new drives.
The world's largest chipmaker also plans to introduce a new product called "Braidwood" that's slated for Q4 2009 too. It will include as much as 16GB of flash memory that will create "better responsiveness and boot-up time." Though it's unclear whether this solution will be integrated into Intel based motherboards or it will stand for an optional separate storage drive, made only for installing operating systems.

According to VRZone, Intel is planning to launch the next generation of Atom CPU's in Q4 2009 with a 45nm single core version, codenamed Pineview, a dual core CPU will shortly follow in Q1 2010. It seems Intel are gearing up to a single chip solution and with this particular generation of Atom, the CPU will be joined by the IGP and memory controller and is based on Lincroft Architecture. There also appears to be a new southbridge in the works to accompany this new chip. No longer do we have ICH-XX variants, but instead this new piece of silicon has been called Tiger Point. Between the two the platform will be known as the Pine Trail-D and will support memory speeds of upto 800Mhz DDR2. Intel claims there will be a 70% reduction in total kit package size and a 50% reduction in total kit TDP.

Barely a month into its launch, AMD's newest processors, the Phenom II X4 920 and Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition, are already in for global price-cuts, of as much as 20%, in the days to come. Sources close to the company indicate that the price-cuts are in view of the recent announcement by Intel to significantly lower the prices of certain models of its Core 2 Quad lineup, which pose direct competition to AMD's new chips.

Once implemented, the Phenom II X4 920 would sell for US $195, down from its launch-price of $235, and a whole $50 would be waived off the $275 price-tag of the Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition, sending it down to $225. These price-cuts are not yet officially confirmed or announced by AMD, and so it isn't known as to when exactly they get officially implemented. All prices in 1000 unit tray quantities.

Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., announced today it is shipping the first two products in its SSDNow line of solid-state drives (SSD) with the SSDNow E Series and SSDNow M Series. Kingston is targeting its SSDs to Fortune 1000 companies and select vertical markets. The SSDNow E Series is specifically designed for the enterprise server environment while the SSDNow M Series is built for the road warrior who demands ultimate performance from a notebook PC. The Kingston SSDNow E and M Series use Intel's solid-state drives, which are the best-performing drives on the market.

"We are thrilled to enter the solid-state drive market with our SSDNow E and M Series SSDs. The combination of the fastest SSDs in the world along with Kingston's tremendous distribution capabilities and legendary customer service will position us to succeed in this arena," said Mark Leathem, director of Flash business development, Kingston Digital. "The performance capabilities of these first two offerings are off the charts and our enterprise customers will be very pleased to use them in servers and corporate laptop computers."

The the coming months, AMD is planning to launch a series of quad-core and triple-core processors to strengthen the company's hold on the sub-$200, even sub-$150 market segment. Intel is reportedly planning a rival lineup of quad-core processors to counter AMD in the segmet. While the Core 2 Quad Q8000 series from Intel makes for its current low-end quad-core CPU lineup, the new lineup will be categorized under the Q7000 series.

Characteristics of the Q7000 series include a total L2 cache size of 2 MB (1 + 1 MB), which is half of that of the Q8000 and a sixth of that of the Q9000 series. The processors will use a narrower 800 MHz FSB and will be built on the 45nm manufacturing process. They will come with rated TDPs of 65W. The first model in this series will be the Core 2 Quad Q7500, which comes with a clock speed of 2.60 GHz. The chip will be priced under US $150, straying into AMD's budget quad-core chip territory.

Intel has officially announced the January price reductions for its Core 2 processors. Below are all processors that have their prices changed after January 18th. For the full list of Intel processors and their MSRPs, please click here.

Now faced with delays, Intel's upcoming Ibex-Peak platform, a next-generation mainstream implementation of the Nehalem architecture, is an interesting mix of technologies, where Intel seeks to minimise the platform and energy footprints while delivering value and performance through a clever bit of rearrangement of system components. HKEPC has learned that Intel's 5-Series mainstream chipsets consists of five models: P57, Q57, H57, P55, and H55. The P57 and P55 are built for the consumer PC with discrete graphics. The H57 and H55 chipsets are built for processors with integrated graphics, with support for the Intel FDI. The Q57 is built for the business / enterprise-client PC, it supports a host of exclusive Intel technologies that make the machine easier to manage.

I'm afraid that what's to be told here, is hard to be categorized as good news. Industry observer DigiTimes reports that Intel is about to postpone the initiation of Lynnfield processors and P55 chipset. Chips based on the quad-core Lynnfield design, are supposed to bring Nehalem to more people, because they'll represent the budget line of Core i7 processors.

Intel has recently decided to postpone its next-generation mainstream CPU Lynnfield along with the P55 chipset to the end of August or the beginning of September this year, and may postpone them to an even later time depending on the market situation, according to sources at motherboard makers. Both Lynnfield and P55 were originally scheduled to launch by the end of July. The economic decline which has caused motherboard makers to suffer overstocked chipset inventory is the major reason for the pull back, according to the sources. After the P55 launches, Intel plans to phase out non-IGP P45 and P43 chipsets and will transition its 4-series IGP chipsets to the entry-level.

On Monday we informed you here that Intel intends to cut the prices on some of its processors. Well, it looks that HKEPC's information wasn't exactly precise as some of our readers pointed out. Now thanks to The Tech Report we have some new info, the new prices will hit on Monday, January 19 and primarily affect Intel's 45nm quad-core processors:

• Core 2 Quad Q9650 3.00GHz 12MB 1333MHz $530 -> ~$322
• Core 2 Quad Q9550 2.83GHz 12MB 1333MHz $316 -> ~$267
• Core 2 Quad Q9400 2.66GHz 6MB 1333MHz $266 -> ~$217
• Core 2 Quad Q8300 2.50GHz 4MB 1333MHz $224 -> ~$194
• Core 2 Quad Q8200 2.33GHz 4MB 1333MHz $193 -> ~$163

Again, this is information from "an anonymous tipster", so these prices may vary.

Intel Corporation today reported fourth-quarter revenue of $8.2 billion, operating income of $1.5 billion, net income of $234 million and earnings per share (EPS) of 4 cents. The results included a billion-dollar negative impact from the previously announced reduction in the carrying value of the company's Clearwire investments.
For 2008, Intel posted revenue of $37.6 billion, operating income of $9 billion, net income of $5.3 billion and EPS of 92 cents. Intel generated approximately $11 billion in cash from operations, paid cash dividends of $3.1 billion and used $7.1 billion to repurchase 324 million shares of common stock.

Leading CPU makers Intel and AMD have adopted memory standards in fairly quick succession in the past. This however, doesn't seem to be the case with DDR3. AMD is yet to release a CPU that supports DDR3 memory, and is two years behind Intel with its DDR3 implementation plans. Intel on the other hand has managed 100% DDR3 dependency with only its premium Core i7 platform, with DDR3 not completely replacing DDR2 in any of its mainstream or value lineups.

Market factors, namely the DRAM manufacturing industry, are increasingly posing difficulties to CPU makers to bring DDR3 memory at a consumer-friendly price point. With manufacturing costs refusing to come down and the Core i7 not able generate the expected demand that justifies selling triple channel kits at sub-$100 price-points, CPU makers are rethinking their large-scale DDR3 standard transition plans for their entire lineups. Intel on its part is contemplating on postponing its 5-series mainstream platform for the Intel Core i5 series processors. AMD on the other hand, is still struggling with technical difficulties in achieving stability and compatibility with DDR3 memory on its DDR3-supportive memory controllers the upcoming AM3-socket CPUs come with. So the company is also unlikely to transition to DDR3 until it is able to come out with a workable BIOS, sources add. It could be as long as 2010 by when a 100% industry-wide implementation of DDR3 can take place.

Back in June 2008, when Intel Introduced the Atom N270, reviewers found its level of performance sufficient for ULPC applications back then. Over a period of six months, it became evident that ULPCs require to deliver a little more than just internet applications. With Intel being reluctant on porting the dual-core Atom to ULPC, owing to its thermal characteristics, there is a need for stepping up the performance level of its relatively cooler single-core Atom.

Therefore, Atom N280. Earlier speculations pointed out that this chip would merely come with a multiplier boost sending its clock speed to 1.86 GHz against 1.60 GHz of its predecessor, but it turns out that Intel was looking to expand the FSB of the existing N270, with a minor clock speed increase. The Atom N280 features a broader 667 MHz FSB against the 533 MHz the N270 comes with. It ends up with a clock speed of 1.66 GHz. While N270 achieved its 1.60 GHz with (12 x 133 MHz), N280 does it with (10 x 166 MHz). Hypothetically, a future model with a 12x FSB multiplier could set the clock speed at 2.00 GHz. What's more, Intel gets rid of the i945GSE chipset infamous for thermal characteristics increasingly unsuitable for ULPCs. It has been replaced with the supposedly cooler GN40 chipset. The N280 has begun surfacing on specification sheets of upcoming ASUS Eee PC models, but it will be only by 2Q, 2009 by the time we start seeing products based on it. Paired with the GN40, the Atom N280 is expected to be priced at US $60-65.

Three leading technology companies announced today a collaboration aimed at transforming global educational assessment and improving learning outcomes. At the Learning and Technology World Forum in London, Cisco, Intel and Microsoft unveiled plans to underwrite a multi-sector research project to develop new assessment approaches, methods and technologies for measuring the success of 21st-century teaching and learning in classrooms around the world. During the session, the three companies called upon educational leaders, governments and other corporations to join in the effort.

The three companies also announced the appointment of Barry McGaw PhD, currently the director of the Melbourne Education Research Institute at the University of Melbourne, as executive director of the project. McGaw will oversee an executive committee, project lead team, and up to 50 leading experts and innovators in academia and government, to collaborate on the research and assist in influencing the development of future international and national assessments.

In a move that asserts Intel's undisputed leadership over the PC microprocessor market, Intel senior performance analyst François Piednoel conducted a special exhibition at the CES 2009 event, where he demonstrated the Core i7's overclocking and resulting performance potential employing water cooling. The water-cooled Intel Core i7 reached speeds in excess of 4.60 GHz, proving it has better overclocking potential than AMD's Phenom II X4 when water-cooled.

The setup included an Intel Core i7 sample seated on an Intel "Smackover" DX58SO motherboard. The motherboard was backed by Intel's own desktop control-center software that provides software-level performance management and monitoring. The processor's vCore was set at 1.44V, with the northbridge set at 1.21V. The clock speed of 4.61 GHz was achieved with a bus speed of 144 MHz with a multiplier value of 32x. Temperatures recoded showed the CPU chugging along at 61 °C, with the CPU VRM at 31 °C and the X58 chipset at 41 °C. The feat shows Core i7 to be the better CPU to overclock when water-cooling is used, while an Intel Core i7 is yet to reach 6.2+ GHz speeds, just for the kicks.

Following periodic price-cuts for its Core 2 series desktop CPUs, Intel could be planning significant price-cuts for its Xeon series enterprise CPUs. This, according to Pacific Crest analyst Michael McConnell. The price-cuts are model-specific. According to McConnel, they are expected to range between 15 and 40% for quad-core Xeon processors and around 13% for dual-core models.

McConnel sees the price cuts as a response to excess inventories of Xeon processors, which is up 13% in Q4, worth up to US $3.85 billion. Another significant factor is AMD, which seems to be gaining market-share through HP, a major player with enterprise-computing. The new prices could be implemented by 18th of January.

Weak market demand, a market saturated with low-cost PCs, and intra-brand competition has reportedly led to first-tier motherboard vendors such as ASUS and Gigabyte to suffer overstock of their Intel 4-series chipset motherboard inventories. The Intel 4-series chipset is the fourth generation of desktop chipsets for LGA-775 processors. It includes popular models such as P45, P43, the mainstream G45, G43 and G41, and others that include Q45, B45 and B43. Motherboards made by leading companies have had less than expected market demand. Earlier in September last year, when ASUS announced price-cuts for its 4-series motherboards, reported back then to make them "competitive", sources tell DigiTimes that the company was already facing swelling inventories.

As a result of this, the biggest loser seems to be ASUS, with a swelling inventory of 6~7 million units, valued at around $180 million, followed by Gigabyte holding an inventory worth around $130 million, which are quickly depreciating in value as the market gets closer to the launch of Intel's 5-series chipsets and the Ibex-Peak platform. With Intel planning to stick to its launch-schedule for its newest platform, motherboard vendors can only hope for Intel to reconsider its plans, delay its launch, and allow the inventories to get digested.

Taking advantage of a high-performing and energy-efficient chip the company already sells to computer makers, Intel Corporation today unveiled a retail point-of-sale (POS) proof-of-concept system that could lower a store's total cost of ownership while improving customer satisfaction. Revealed at the National Retail Federation Convention (NRF) in New York, Intel's proof-of-concept exhibits the latest in digital signage and point-of-sale technology in a kiosk form factor, and demonstrates how technology can enhance the retail shopping experience.

Currently leading AMD in every market-segment of CPUs, Intel is planning to take on the Athlon Neo series CPUs, a set of low-wattage CPUs specifically designed for the ultrathin form-factor notebooks. Intel's Athlon Neo competitor would take shape from its current ultra low-voltage (ULV) processors that feature in products such as the Apple Macbook Air.

The processors will use the 22 sq mm packaging. Intel's lineup is expected to include ULV chips with rated TDPs as low as 10W, against AMD's Athlon Neo chips offering rated TDPs as low as 15W. There is no word on the availability of these chips, although with Athlon Neo based products coming out only in Q2 2009, that still leaves Intel at least three months to prepare its new ULV chips.

If the Chinese HKEPC is to be believed, Intel is planning on slashing the prices of six Core 2 Duo processors, including the Core 2 Quad Q8200 (down from $193 to $183), the Core 2 Duo E7400 (down from $133 to $113), E5300 (down from $86 to $74), E5200 (down from $84 to $64), E2220 (down from $74 to $64) and E1400 (down from $53 to $43). On January 18th, Intel will also come out with two low-cost dual-core processors - the Core 2 Duo E7500 (2.93GHz@1066MHz FSB, 3MB L2 cache, 65W TDP) and E5400 (2.70GHz@1066MHz FSB, 2MB L2 cache, 65W TDP). This month will see the release of several energy efficient Intel Core 2 Quads as well. Here are their models and specs:

• Core 2 Quad Q9550s - 2.83GHz@1333MHz FSB, 12MB L2 cache, 65W TDP, $369
• Core 2 Quad Q9400s - 2.66GHz@1333MHz FSB, 6MB L2 cache, 65W TDP, $320
• Core 2 Quad Q8200s - 2.33GHz@1333MHz FSB, 4MB L2 cache, 65W TDP, $245

Local computer manufacturers unveiled the Intel-powered convertible classmate PC designs, joining the existing clamshell design to meet the variety of elementary school students' needs worldwide. The new flexible design, based on Intel Corporation technologies, converts instantly from a clamshell to a tablet mode with a touch screen to allow for a more intuitive classroom experience. According to research with students and teachers, the 180-degree swivel design, rotational camera and touch screen encourage flexible classroom interaction and natural collaboration. Both the convertible and the clamshell classmate PC designs are based on ethnographic studies and feedback from pilot programs conducted in both mature and emerging markets.

Intel Corporation today announced preliminary fourth-quarter financial information with revenue of approximately $8.2 billion, down 20 percent sequentially and down 23 percent year over year. Revenue will be lower than the company's previous expectation, provided on Nov. 12, 2008, as a result of further weakness in end demand and inventory reductions by its customers in the global PC supply chain. The preliminary estimate of gross margin for the fourth quarter is at the bottom of the previous expectation of 55 percent, plus or minus a couple of points.

QNAP Systems, Inc. today announced a series of next generation iSCSI network-attached storage (NAS) products based on Intel architecture to deliver the performance and enterprise-grade features that customers are looking for in 2009.

The new Turbo NAS family consists of 4-bay, 5-bay, 6-bay, and 8-bay (with redundant power supply) models which are well suited for small and midsize businesses (SMB) and enterprises. The powerful all-in-one feature is designed for businesses that require storage solutions of performance, features, capacity, and manageability.

Adobe Systems Incorporated and Intel Corporation today announced plans to collaborate on the development to port and optimize Adobe Flash technology for the Intel Media Processor CE 3100. This effort is expected to provide consumers with richer and more seamless Web-based and video viewing experiences through advanced Intel-based cable set-top boxes, Blu-ray Disc players, digital TVs and retail connected AV devices. The high-definition capabilities of the Adobe Flash Platform, together with the Intel Media Processor CE 3100, the first in a new family of purpose-built Intel System on Chips (SoCs) for CE devices, creates a powerful entertainment hub capable of delivering rich Web content and Adobe Flash based applications to an array of Internet-connected CE devices. Intel and Adobe are working together to optimize both the Adobe Flash Player and Adobe Flash Lite for the CE3100. Intel plans to ship the first CE3100 with support for an optimized implementation of Adobe Flash Lite before mid-2009.

Intel has released a total of five new mobile processors over the holidays, including one quad-core CPU and four dual-core models:

• Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000 - 2.0 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 6MB of L2 cache, TDP 45W - $348
• Intel Core 2 Duo T9800 - 2.93 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 6MB of L2 cache, TDP of 35W - $530
• Intel Core 2 Duo T9550 - 2.66 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 6MB of L2 cache, TDP of 35W - $348
• Intel Core 2 Duo P9600 - 2.66 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 6MB of L2 cache, TDP of 25W - $316
• Intel Core 2 Duo P8700 - 2.53 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 6MB of L2 cache, TDP of 25W - $241