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Intel's Larrabee Multi-Core GPU Chips Get Detail, Timescale
Posted by Kit Eaton at 6:59 PM on August 4, 2008
About a year ago, we first brought you news on Intel's Larrabee multi-cored GPU chips, but some new info is hitting the intertubes and hints that the chips could have uses beyond graphics. An alternative to developing faster—but hotter—processors, Larrabee will have between 16 and 48 processor cores aboard, all compatible with the classic x86 instruction set.
This massively-parallel architecture is ideally suited to gaming systems, of course, but Intel plans on extending its usefulness into the handheld and even supercomputing domains. Larrabee's chief designer puts the new chip architecture "on the level of the 432 or the Itanium." It'll be competing against next-gen chips from Nvidia and ATI, which will have between 256 and 800 cores, so Larrabee is relying on its "high speed ring" which interconnects cores more efficiently than current designs. Should be available in late 2009 or early 2010. Interesting stuff. [NYTimes]
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
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JaLooNz
Posted 9:26 PM 4/8/08
Read this article if you want to have more details.
[www.anandtech.com]
JaLooNz
yuriythebest
Posted 9:55 PM 4/8/08
awesome!! oh and first
yuriythebest
Eruanno
Posted 10:12 PM 4/8/08
So... these will have between 16 and 48 cores versus ATI and Nvidia who puts in 256 - 800?!
Yeah, I'm gonna go with Nvidia or ATI. Thank you.
Eruanno
ARP
Posted 10:55 PM 4/8/08
So help some regular Joe like me- are we moving away from the CPU model with so many cores?
ARP
qbrad
Posted 11:40 PM 4/8/08
@yuriythebest: last winner douche.
qbrad
hammertime1994
Posted 11:31 PM 4/8/08
Is this supposed to be a CPU or a GPU. Or does it act as both, with a couple of dedicated RAM slots to be used as a frame buffer? What's the point?
hammertime1994
Freak786
Posted 7:53 PM 4/8/08
Wow that really looks great, I hope that it is more improved for gaming as the current quad cores=meh.
Freak786
aec007
Posted 2:10 AM 5/8/08
@Freak786: We are talking GPU's not CPU's.
ATI already is doing it. Their new (not in the market yet) RV770 core on the new HD4870 and HD4875 x2 video cards are the first to bring multicore architecture to the GPU instead of monolithic cores as Nvidia's GPU's are.
The new DM08 (Dream Machine 2008) that MaximumPC made (about $17,000 rig) has them.
And by looking at the numbers...multicore really pays off in videocards. Go Intel!.
aec007
freddyg
Posted 2:06 AM 5/8/08
that picture would look nice on my wall
freddyg
i_9
Posted 3:04 AM 5/8/08
@yuriythebest:
Get out, seriously. As for being somewhat on topic, I just can't ever see myself buying hardware on release. It's always too damn overpriced, hopefully this doesn't float over the 500$ range.
i_9
OddManOut
Posted 4:21 AM 5/8/08
And yes, I realize we'll need a lot more multi threaded software before multi cores really come into their own. I'm thinking anything like what I describe is probably 5 - 10 years away...not Q1 of '09 or anything like that.
I just think it would be a neat direction for general microprocessing to take...
OddManOut
OddManOut
Posted 4:15 AM 5/8/08
Hmmm...it would be kinda cool if laptops, netbooks, MIDS, and various other computers generally deemed 'lower performance' could have say 16+ general purpose cores that could dynamically scale to meet the needs of current use. Want to type in word ? No prob 8 cores general 8 cores graphical. Want some music while you work ? Got it covered -> 8+2 cores general, 6 cores graphical. Done with that doc and you wanna chill with a movie ? Get it on...6 cores general, 10 cores graphical. What else did I see that actor in ? Wanna check wikipedia ? You got it -> 6+2 cores general, 8 cores graphical...
And so on and so forth...
Of course, there are a lot of other concerns to this type of setup...memory architechture for one, internal/external bus speeds and such, but it would be very nifty if a system could balance processing power this way. Perhaps even shutting of half or more of the cores at times for power optimization.
I guess this is actually kind of the direction AMD is going with 'Fusion', though with more core task optimization.
It should be interesting to see what develops...from all camps... :)
OddManOut
eblingmis
Posted 6:17 AM 5/8/08
@JaLooNz: Just because I read that Anandtech article doesn't mean I understood any of it. Seems intriguing enough though.
eblingmis