Intel has quietly made a new addition to their LGA1366 lineup, the Core i7 960.

The new chip clocks in at 3.2GHz (3.33GHz with Turbo Boost), which puts it in the same league as a Turbo Boosted i7 860 (2.93-3.46GHz). The new chip replaces the 950’s position in the Core i7 lineup, and additionally makes way for the new 975 Extreme Edition CPU.

With a higher average frequency and an identical price of $562, the 950 also casts serious doubt on the value of the new Lynnfield-based Core i7 870.

In the lexicon of acronyms frequently bandied about by geeks, gamers, and computer professionals, TDP doesn’t come up too frequently. Phrases like “How many GHz?” “How many MB of L3?” and “What’s the FSB?” are far more likely to come up in conversation than, “What’s the TDP on that chip?”

What is TDP?

But TDP, or thermal design power, is something that those with energy concerns, noise requirements, or overclocking aspirations should definitely pay attention to. The TDP of any processor describes the amount of heat dissipated during nominal operation. That heat emission is largely the product of a processor’s operating voltage and electrical efficiency; those, in turn, are dictated by clock speeds, fabrication size, and overall architecture.

For example, chips like the Intel Atom and AMD Athlon Neo are designed to use minimal power by drawing a low voltage and running at a low clock speed. Typically armed with single cores and minimal cache, these processors are intentionally simple so they top out around 15W TDP.

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Correction (15 September, 2009 @ 6:15 PM EST): The original run of this article indicated that the Lynnfield’s onboard PCIe controller depended upon the system’s bclock generator for its frequency. This is incorrect and has been redacted. All Lynnfield CPUs use an independent clock generator for the PCIe controller with a nominal frequency of 100MHz. Raising the bclock on a Lynnfield system will not push the PCI Express bus out of spec.

Original story follows:

Right on schedule, Intel has launched new Core i5 and Core i7 processors based on the LGA1156 Lynnfield core. Arriving in three flavors, are the new chips enough to unseat AMD’s price/performance crown? How do they stack up to the existing Bloomfield Core i7s? How are they different? Are they worth buying? We wanted to answer these questions ahead of our official Core i7 860 review which is coming soon.

First off, we wanted to drop all the current Core i5 and Core i7 parts in a table to show you their official specifications.

The formal specs for Core i5 and Core i7 CPUs

Next, we want to make some terminology very clear so as to avoid confusion going forward:

Bloomfield: This is the codename for the desktop Nehalem-based processors which launched last year. They use the LGA1366 socket, they are sold exclusively with Core i7 900 series branding, and are paired exclusively with the X58 chipset. The current roster of Bloomfield chips includes: Core i7 920, Core i7 950, and Core i7 975 XE.

Lynnfield: This is the codename for the desktop Nehalem-based processors which launch today. They use the LGA1156 socket, they are sold with Core i5 700 and Core i7 800 series branding, and are paired exclusively with the P55 chipset. The current roster of Lynnfield chips includes: Core i5 750, Core i7 860, and Core i7 870.

Now we’ll answer the million-dollar question…

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The impending launch of Intel’s Lynnfield processors, the LGA1156-powered little brother to the Nehalem, is perhaps one of the worst kept secrets in the industry. We’ve been aware of the various SKUs for quite some time, but now a UK shop has jumped the gun and offered pricing.

Captain, there be Lynnfields!

The price on the i7 870 seems especially outrageous, so we can only assume it’s price-gouging or some other irrelevant anomaly.

Finally, as a reminder to people who just bought into Nehalem and may be panicking over a new chip with a new socket: Don’t sweat it. Lynnfield is a product designed to accommodate budget-conscious users, and it’s slower than Nehalem. Not only does Lynnfield use an older system bus technology, it does not use the Nehalem’s LGA1366 socket that Intel will use for the new 32nm chips coming this winter.

Frys.com claims that the Core i5 750 based on the upcoming Lynnfield core is in stock and ready for shipment.

Premature retailization is a serious condition.

The chip is not scheduled to launch until next month, but the 750’s star spangled appearance is second to China which has already bought and benched the part.

The Lynnfield family of processors comes as the budget-conscious alternative to the current crop of pricier Bloomfield Core i7 models. Based on the new LGA1156 socket, Lynnfield chips will launch with Core i5 (no HyperThreading) or Core i7 (HyperThreading enabled) branding.

The lower MSRPs for Lynnfield SKUs is largely owed to the removal of QuickPath Interconnect. QPI is Intel’s response to AMD’s HyperTransport, both of which offer high-bandwidth point-to-point links between the chipset or other CPUs. Lynnfield will instead use the simpler Direct Media Interface (DMI) to communicate with a unified core logic — dubbed the Platform Controller Hub (PCH) — which replaces both the northbridge and southbridge for the Lynnfield-only P55 chipset.

The reduction in memory controller and motherboard complexity is responsible for cost reductions which are being passed on to the consumer.

If your head is spinning over Intel’s decision to give budget parts the same branding as enthusiast parts, worry not. We’re totally right there with you.

Five months ago we reviewed the Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition. Our consensus was that it’s a good chip, on par with Intel’s Q9550 but with a lower sticker price. For five months, prices have stayed consistent so our opinion stands… Sort of.

Today, we welcome the Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition as the new AMD flagship processor. It has the same architecture and price as the previous chip, but is clocked a full 200mhz faster and bpoasts a higher TDP.

AMD says the Q9550 is the closest thing Intel has to compare with the new Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition, but since it was neck-and-neck with the slower 955, there’s no reason to throw it head-to-head with the 965– we all know the extra 200mhz will pull the 965 ahead. So, we’re taking a different route today to see how this flagship chip compares to the Core i7 920.

Yes, we’re aware the Core i7 is more expensive. It’s a $280 powerhouse. For the $35 difference, buyers should be getting their money’s worth. We aim to see if what is approximately a 15 percent increase in price gives users at least a 15 percent increase in performance!

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We’ve been discussing Intel’s upcoming Gulftown for quite a while now. Tapped to succeed the Bloomfield (Core i7) at the top of Intel’s performance heap, the new Core i9-branded part will launch with a raft of enhancements to make sure it fills those shoes.

Gulftown’s membership in the 32nm Westmere family of architectures has allowed Intel to drop temps, boost cache, raise clockspeeds and increase the cores– six, to be exact. With a dash of HyperThreading and X58 compatibility, enthusiast desktops will be primed to chew through twelve concurrent threads when the chip debuts in early 2010.

While the details surrounding the chip have been available for quite some time, hard performance has remained elusive until today. HKEPC has recently published a small review that pits the Core i9 against a battery of tests, all of which paint it as an improvement to the Bloomfield.

To whet your appetite, here’s a snippet we’ve polished after Google spit it out:

In power consumption and temperature testing, the 32nm manufacturing process used by the Intel Gulftown offered amazing performance. Although Gulftown has six cores to the Bloomfield Core i7’s four, power consumption and temperatures are lower than the quad core. This proves that the next-generation 32nm manufacturing process is very mature.

UPDATE: 27 July, 2009 @ 11:57 AM

Ex-Inq journo and long-time Valley rabble-rouser Charlie Demerjian has recently offered new insight on the wild world of ATI’s DirectX 11 codenames in a brutal piece on plagiarism in the world of tech journalism. Here’s the breakdown:

Hemlock: Highest-end desktop part, probably dual Cypress GPUs a la the rumored Radeon 5870 X2.
Cypress: High-end single-GPU part. Similar to the Radeon HD 4870 when it launched.
Juniper: Mid-range desktop part. Similar to the Radeon HD 4850 when it launched.
Cedar & Redwood: Low-end desktop parts. Similar to the Radeon HD 4650 and 4670.

The confusion in the codenames contained in the original story is most likely owed to a simple transcription error on behalf of The Inquirer. It happens, especially when (as Chuck D points out) you’re being blitzed with PR, buzzwords and codenames. Anyone who’s been to a trade show or a press event understands.

Original story follows:

Today’s semiconductor news from the likes of AMD and Intel aren’t quite headline material, but they’re better than the proverbial page bury. Times like these call for a roundup, but our taskmaster editor doesn’t like them. Good thing he’s sleeping off a lake party and isn’t around to stop us.

AMD’s DirectX 11 codenames

DirectX 11 is just around the corner, and NVIDIA’s struggles to get its shit together at 40nm has left AMD the sole heir to the estate this winter.

While considerable speculation remains over just how AMD plans to get into the spirit of the season, we do have codename confirmations to tide you over.

The family of 40nm DirectX 11 GPUs is collectively known as the Evergreen. The Evergreen architecture will launch with five parts that will span the price spectrum:

• Cypress (Desktop: For those with more money than sense)
• Redwood (Desktop: An enthusiast part like the Radeon 4890)
• Juniper & Cedar (Desktop: Mainstream parts like the Radeon 4670 and 4650)
• Hemlock (Desktop: Poisonous parts for the cheapskates amongst us)

Word has it that AMD has already received functioning Evergreen silicon back from the fab. If that’s true, we are indeed looking at a DX11 launch timed to coincide with Windows 7. It’s like the Radeon 9800 coup all over again!
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Update 31 July, 2009: In the time since Intel announced its new branding initiative, the firm has wizened and kicked the impending 32nm Gulftown under the “Core i9″ banner. While the rest of their branding scheme remains inane as ever, it’s nice to see some clarity bubbling to the surface.

Original story follows:

Yesterday Intel Corp. announced a sweeping change to their branding which is every bit as confusing for the consumer as the branding it replaced.

The world’s largest CPU company announced the changes as a major pillar in a sweeping strategy allegedly designed to simplify branding for customers. Intel spokesman Bill Calder wrote that the Core branding currently suffered from an identity crisis at multiple levels.

“Today the Intel Core brand has a mind boggling array of derivatives (such as Core^TM2 Duo and Core 2 Quad, etc),” he said. “Over time those will go away and in its place will be a simplified family of Core processors spanning multiple levels.”

Intel’s new strategy is hinged on permutations of the “Core i7″ branding unveiled with the introduction of the firm’s new Nehalem family of architecture. Here’s how it works: (more…)

The newly-minted Intel Core i7 975-EE topped 5GHz on air at Computex. [via]

Though Intel had not yet played its hand to officially unveil two new contenders in the Core i7 lineup, that hasn’t stopped BFG Technologies from introducing the Phobos line of systems which contain the new processors.

Lake Forest, IL – (June 1, 2009) – BFG Technologies®, Inc., the leading North American and European supplier of advanced NVIDIA-based 3D graphics cards, and award-winning power supplies announced today that the Phobos™ Advanced and Elite Editions Gaming/Home Theater System now come standard with Intel’s Core i7 950 and 975 processors respectively. The upgraded processors are now the default CPUs for the Phobos Advanced and Elite and are available at no additional charge to customers.

The systems were first introduced at CES with lesser specs, including the Core i7 940 and the Core i7 965, and now they rock Intel’s newest kit:

Intel Core i7 975 EE

Frequency: 3.33GHz
L2 Cache: 256k/core
L3 Cache: 8MB Shared
Bus: 6.4GT/s QPI
Voltage: 0.80V-1.225V
TDP: 130W
sSpec #: SLBEQ
Stepping: D0
Price: $1100 USD

Intel Core i7 950

Frequency: 3.06GHz
L2 Cache: 256k/core
L3 Cache: 8MB Shared
Bus: 4.8GT/s QPI
Voltage: 0.80V-1.225V
TDP: 130W
sSpec #: SLBEN
Stepping: D0
Price: $649 USD

Pictures of the Intel Bloomfield, Lynnfield, and Havendale CPUs.