02-09-2016, 04:36 AM
This is actually about how they can maximize performance. Right now an i7 is peaking at ~380GFLOPs- the systems they are talking about start at 1,000,000GFLOPs. We aren't touching exascale using a monolithic CPU design in the next decade, not going to happen. How do you fit the highest amount of computing power in the smallest possible space. Smaller more power efficient cores with extremely fast interconnects will get us there much easier than the monolithic approach we are using now.
Said another way- what if your i7 came to you as four separate chips each that could be cooled using a small heat sink without a fan? What kind of form factor PC could you build? Adding to that, how many of those core chips could you fit in one motherboard? Total computing power goes *WAY* up versus what is possible using a monolithic approach(in no way am I saying that is Intel's plan, just a way to think of it).
It is simply coming back full circle, multi socket machines used to be how we did all the heavy lifting. They aren't saying their next gen parts are going to be slower than current ones, they are saying that they are going to move to a different trajectory to maintain forward momentum instead of waiting until they smash into the wall.
AMD is not a player in the CPU space- Intel is flirting with falling to fourth place behind Qualcomm, Apple and Samsung when looking at volume. Yes, Intel still has much higher revenue, ARM is doing the same thing to Intel that Intel did to the old 'big iron' CPU manufacturers. Obviously, Intel isn't going to let that happen without a fight.
Said another way- what if your i7 came to you as four separate chips each that could be cooled using a small heat sink without a fan? What kind of form factor PC could you build? Adding to that, how many of those core chips could you fit in one motherboard? Total computing power goes *WAY* up versus what is possible using a monolithic approach(in no way am I saying that is Intel's plan, just a way to think of it).
It is simply coming back full circle, multi socket machines used to be how we did all the heavy lifting. They aren't saying their next gen parts are going to be slower than current ones, they are saying that they are going to move to a different trajectory to maintain forward momentum instead of waiting until they smash into the wall.
Quote:They just gave AMD a golden opportunity to catch up after 2021.
AMD is not a player in the CPU space- Intel is flirting with falling to fourth place behind Qualcomm, Apple and Samsung when looking at volume. Yes, Intel still has much higher revenue, ARM is doing the same thing to Intel that Intel did to the old 'big iron' CPU manufacturers. Obviously, Intel isn't going to let that happen without a fight.