Shocking news! Intel is talking up Ultrabooks at CES

Subject: General Tech, Shows and Expos | January 10, 2012 - 11:50 AM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: CES, Intel, ultrabook, Ivy Bridge

It might be hard to believe but the form factor everyone loves to talk about is on the lips on Intel reps everywhere at CES including the GM of the PC Group, Mooly Eden.   The new ultra-thin form factor introduced by Intel this follows the design theory of the Macbook Air while trying to stay a PC at heart and has been received with mixed feelings.  While it is nice to have an ultra-thin, ultra-light machine which is capable of running office productivity tasks at a good level of performance the attached price tag has discouraged potential distributors and buyers alike; the under $1000 specification cannot be reached without sacrificing quality.  That is in part do to the materials used to make an ultrathin laptop that is still rigid enough to stand up to normal usage and in part to the philosophy of 'instant on' which requires an SSD to be used as the main storage medium.  Eden tells The Inquirer that he sees Windows 8 offering huge potential to the ultrabook thanks to its touchscreen friendly design.  He describes devices similar to the ASUS Transformer, a product usable as a touch device like a tablet but with a full keyboard available for when you are doing more than just surfing the web.   New Ivy Bridge internals will probably help as well, bringing increased performance and lowered power usage, though probably not doing anything good to the sticker price. 

"CHIPMAKER Intel gave its attention at the CES conference to promoting the real-world benefits of ultrabooks.

The company highlighted a design and marketing effort to shift its focus from benchmarks and statistics to examples of real-world capabilities and applications that will be improved by what it hopes will become a growing ultrabook market."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• 2012 Intel CES liveblog @ Ars Technica
• With CES Sendoff, Microsoft Insists It’s Still Cool @ Wired
• Alt.CES: MAKE’s Take, 2012
• Gigabyte T1132N 3-in-1 computer unveiled at CES 2012 @ eTeknix
• TechwareLabs Event Coverage: CES2012 Monster Press Conference
• CES 2012: MSI’s Z77 Motherboards & Graphics Upgrade System @ Hardware Canucks
• Gigabyte Z77 motherboards shown off at CES @ eTeknix
• Intel demos transparent-lid hybrid PC @ The Register
• ASUS's new ROG sound cards @ CES 2012 undressed @ VR-Zone
• CES 2012 Day 0 - Press Day - MSI Thermaltake and nVidia @ Ninjalane
• CES 2012 Coverage Of Thermaltake and Gigabyte Posted @ Legit Reviews
  

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• What's New in Linux 3.2? @ Linux.com
• OpenGL 3.0 Finally Comes To Open-Source @ Phoronix
• Asustek announces revenues for 2011; conservative about 1Q12 performance @ DigiTimes

PC Perspective's CES 2012 coverage is sponsored by MSI Computer.

Follow all of our coverage of the show at http://pcper.com/ces!

Ivy Bridge should be here by the spring

Subject: Processors | December 5, 2011 - 01:48 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: Ivy Bridge, Intel, i3-3200, i7-3700, i5-3500, i5-3400, 22nm, tri-gate

Good news for those of you who have been waiting to upgrade in the hopes that Ivy Bridge will be arriving on time.  It seems your patience has paid off but you will have to wait a while longer before you can get your hands on Intel's next tick.  You can look forward to more PCIe 3.0 lanes, just like those who've jumped onto the new Sandy Bridge E chips and a bump on the GPU portion of the chip.  X-bit Labs doesn't have any pricing for the new chips, but they do list all of the models you will be able to buy.  One thing you should note are the impressive TDPs, they may not count as low power CPUs but they're certainly lower than other Intel and AMD chips currently on the market.

"Intel Corp. has notified its partners about its decision to introduce of its next-generation code-named Ivy Bridge processors in the second quarter of 2012. Previously the company planned to release the Core i 3000-series central processing units (CPUs) for desktops in March - April timeframe, which left a possibility to unveil the chips in the first quarter."

Here are some more Processor articles from around the web:

Processors

• Intel Core i7-3690X-EE @ LostCircuits
• Intel Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition Review @ Techgage
• Desktop CPU Comparison Guide @ TechARP
• AMD FX-8150 CPU @ Metku.net
• AMD FX-8150 With The Open64 5.0 Compiler @ Phoronix

Ivy Bridge Delayed Further Into 2012

Subject: Processors | December 1, 2011 - 11:50 AM | Tim Verry
Tagged: Ivy Bridge, Intel, delayed, 22nm

Although Intel’s latest Sandy Bridge successor, Ivy Bridge, was slated for a January 2012 launch, the situation is now looking more bleak. According to these slides over at BSN, Intel is delaying Ivy Bridge until at least April. While the top end Core i7 3770 Ivy Bridge processor might be available as soon as Q2 2012, it is also the most expensive part, and usually not the one that the majority of enthusiasts are waiting for. Rather, the important processors to watch for are the mid range and overclocker-friendly Core i5 series which will be available in Q3 2012 at the earliest if the current road-map holds true. The i5 3550 part may come out in Q2 2012 along with the top end i7 CPU; however, the majority of i5 processors will be released as soon as Q3 2012.

Further, the budget Core i3 Ivy Bridge parts are in the same boat as the i5 processors, with at least one (possibly) becoming available along with the top end Core i7 part in Q2 2012 and the rest slowly trickling out over the remainder of the year. While it is generally the case that the top end processor(s) are released first, followed by the lower end and less expensive parts, the delay has pushed back a April release for some of the budget parts to a Summer release. Needless to say, it is less than ideal for those consumers eagerly waiting for certain chips to go on sale. Not to mention that for those adventurous few that were willing to pay top dollar for the top end i7 chip this January now have to wait even longer.

The delay is likely due to Intel wanting to get as much money as possible out of the Sandy Bridge platform, and the lackluster launch of AMD’s Bulldozer products. Intel is likely taking the extra time to refine the new chipsets and the PCIe 3.0 support (that is also not technically rated for PCIe 3.0 speeds, sort of (heh)). On the other hand, Bright Side Of News speculates that the delay may be in part due to various retirements throughout the company requiring more development time in addition to needing more time to flesh out the graphics drivers for the GPU portion of Ivy Bridge processors.

Were you hoping for an Ivy Bridge upgrade early next year? Because of the further delays, will you spring for a top end Sandy Bridge system or wait it out for Ivy Bridge despite the money burning a hole in your pocket? As someone that is still rocking a 1156 system, I was hoping to skip Sandy Bridge and go for Ivy Bridge (I seem to love near-end-to-life sockets); however, with the delays I’m not sure what I’ll be doing now.

You've a date with Intel on the Ivy Bridge

Subject: General Tech | October 21, 2011 - 11:46 AM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: Intel, Ivy Bridge, release

Z68, we hardly had time to know you and now you are leaving us; at least the 67 twins were around for a bit.  March will be mad for reviewers and tech junkies as Ivy Bridge is scheduled to arrive on the scene.  The updated chip moves to 22nm and will also be the first to feature Intel's Tri-Gate transistors which should keep the TDP of even the higher speed models of chip below current generation chips. DigiTimes also lists the models of motherboards that will arrive with the new chip, all half dozen of them.

"Intel is expected to unveil its 22nm Ivy Bridge CPUs in March 2012 at the earliest, with initial offerings focusing on dual- and quad-core models, according to sources at motherboard makers.

The quad-code Ivy Bridge CPUs will have thermal design power (TDP) ratings of 45W, 65W and 77W, while the dual-core models will have TDP ratings of 35W and 55W, indicated the sources.

For the 7-series desktop CPUs, Intel will launch Z77 and Z75 chipsets to replace its Z68 and P67, and a H77 to replace H67. Additionally, Intel will also release Q77, Q75 and B75 chipsets for business models, replacing the Q67, Q65 and B65."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• Apple SUCKS At Security @ [H]ard|OCP
• A very simple Android recon vehicle @ Hack a Day
• 7 Years of Ubuntu: Ubuntu Then and Now @ Linux
• Suppliers have mixed feelings about SSD adoption in ultrabooks @ DigiTimes
• Asustek to launch Eee Pad Transformer Prime tablet PC soon @ DigiTimes
• Microsoft reports record revenue, lackluster Windows sales @ The Register
• Deep inside ARM's new Intel killer @ The Register
• Bug in Flash Player allowed Mac webcam spying @ The Register
• Fujifilm FinePix XP30 Review @ TechReviewSource

Overclocking the next generation of Intel CPUs

Subject: General Tech | October 14, 2011 - 11:24 AM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: sandy bridge-e, overclocking, lynx point, Ivy Bridge, Intel, haswell

 Perhaps not everybody has fond memories of overclocking past architectures with jumpers on motherboards and needing to be able to do math to determine what overclock you want and more importantly if it took or if the system bailed back to default clocks.  Those days are behind us now, as the BIOS becomes the UEFI and you can use a mouse to affect changes on your system timings.  Bulldozer does offer some complexity to those looking for a challenge but for most it is the unlocked Sandy Bridge processors that are the go to chip for overclockers.  According to information VR-Zone picked up at IDF, overclocking the upcoming families of processors will be even easier.  Intel has changed quite a bit over recent years, from the extreme of locking all their processor frequencies to making it easy for the enthusiast to push their CPU beyond design specs.

"Ivy Bridge CPUs decouple the main clock finally, following what the coming Sandy Bridge - E Socket 2011 is also implementing. Now, you can overclock the cores and memory without worrying about affecting the I/O and PCIe clocks. But then comes the more interesting piece news. A year later, in early 2013, the pinnacle of Intel's 22 nm process show off, the initial Haswell processor, is expected to go another step further, where CPU core, GPU, memory, PCI and DMI ratios are all set independently here, on top of fine grain BCLK base clock available within the Lynx Point chipset."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• EUV closer to commercialization @ SemiAccurate
• RRAM to take on flash at 11nm @ SemiAccurate
• AMD Ports Open-Source Linux Driver To Windows Embedded @ Phoronix
• Did a Seagate sales bloke just say 5TB drives are coming? @ The Register
• TEXT GOES HERE
• Kisai Rogue Touch LED Watch Review @ Tech-Reviews
• AMD’s Sasa Marinkovic speaks to Kitguru about Bulldozer FX
• Weekly Giveaway #13: OCZ Vertex 3 120GB Solid State Drive @ eTeknix
• Real World Labs And Other World Computing Joint Contest

Ivy Bridge will power three headed Linux powered monsters

Subject: General Tech | October 6, 2011 - 12:41 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: Ivy Bridge, linux, multi monitor

Intel's Linux graphics driver is open source and the developers who work on it ensure that their code is publicly available which results in findings such as the one Phoronix is reporting on this morning.  While examining the Direct Rendering Manager kernel driver they discovered more information on the triple video output support that Ivy Bridge is supposed to support.  It seems that some Ivy Bridge motherboard will sport three DisplayPort outputs which can all be used simultaneously and others a pair of HDMI ports with a D-SUB connector making up the third output.  More importantly, because this was found in the Linux driver it becomes obvious that Intel intends to support multi-monitor output on Linux.  Watch out AMD.

"Patches were made public by Intel yesterday for their Linux graphics driver that enable "Ivy Bridge" hardware to simultaneously drive three monitors. Thanks to Intel's Linux driver being open-source and their OSTC developers doing the hardware enablement work in public, there's some new details about this triple monitor support for the next-generation Ivy Bridge hardware."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• Chinese comedians in Samsung hybrid drive con @ The Register
• IBM and Crocus join MRAM-forces @ SemiAccurate
• Sony DEV-5 Digital Recording Binoculars sample photos and video @ Engadget
• Attack on Apache server exposes firewalls, routers and more @ The Register
• TSMC to visit Apple for more talks @ DigiTimes
• Can't stop the tweet: the peril—and promise—of social networking for IT @ Ars Technica
• SuVolta to take on Intel’s FinFET transistors @ SemiAccurate

Take a trip on the Ivy Bridge

Subject: Processors | September 22, 2011 - 02:35 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: Intel, Ivy Bridge, tick, 22nm, tri-gate

Over at AnandTech you can read about the first processor to be designed using Intel's new Tri-Gate transistors, Ivy Bridge.  As well this new take on Sandy Bridge will natively support USB 3.0 thanks to the improved Z77, Z75 and H77 chipsets.  There will also be Q77, Q75 and B75 to make sure you get a more alphabet soup to deal with.  The new GPU inside is something Intel is rather proud of, a claimed 33% improvement is impressive and signals that Intel really is taking the iGPU portion of their chips seriously.  That focus is confirmed if you read through the minimal improvements to the CPU side, not a bad thing at all, simply confirmation that Intel is concerned more with power efficiency and graphics performance instead of just pumping up the megahertz.

"Five years ago Intel announced its ambitious tick-tock release cadence. We were doubtful that Intel could pull off such an aggressive schedule but with the exception of missing a few months here or there tick-tock has been a success. On years marked by a tick Intel introduces a new manufacturing process, while tock years keep manufacturing process the same and introduce a new microprocessor architecture. To date we've had three tocks (Conroe, Nehalem, Sandy Bridge) and two ticks (Penryn, Westmere). Sampling by the end of this year and shipping in the first half of next year will be Intel's third tick: Ivy Bridge."

Here are some more Processor articles from around the web:

Processors

• Intel Core i5 2400S @ Phoronix
• All Core i7 Models @ Hardware Secrets
• All Core i5 Models @ Hardware Secrets
• All Core i3 Models @ Hardware Secrets
• Mobile CPU Comparison Guide @ TechARP
• Workstation & Server CPU Comparison Guide @ TechARP
• Interactive AMD Phenom product ID guide @ OC Inside

Podcast #170 - AMD Bulldozer developments, the Windows 8 Developer Preview, News from IDF and more!

Subject: General Tech | September 15, 2011 - 07:23 PM | Ken Addison
Tagged: sandy bridge, podcast, Ivy Bridge, idf 2011, idf, gpu, cpu, bulldozer, amd

PC Perspective Podcast #170 - 9/15/2011

Join us this week as we discuss AMD Bulldozer developments, the Windows 8 Developer Preview, News from IDF and more!

You can subscribe to us through iTunes and you can still access it directly through the RSS page HERE.

The URL for the podcast is: http://pcper.com/podcast - Share with your friends!

• iTunes - Subscribe to the podcast directly through the iTunes Store
• RSS - Subscribe through your regular RSS reader
• MP3 - Direct download link to the MP3 file

Hosts: Ryan Shrout, Josh Walrath, Jeremy Hellstrom, Allyn Malventano

This Podcast is brought to you by MSI Computer, and their all new Sandy Bridge Motherboards!

Sorry about audio problems due to Skype and Ryan having little bandwidth on the road

Program length: 45:26

Program Schedule:

1. 0:00:40 Introduction
2. 1-888-38-PCPER or podcast@pcper.com
3. http://pcper.com/podcast
4. http://twitter.com/ryanshrout and http://twitter.com/pcper
5. Stay Tuned for a contest!!
6. 0:01:30 ECS HDC-I Fusion Mini ITX Motherboard Review
7. 0:02:36 Bulldozer First Release and the State of 32nm AMD Parts
8. 0:10:15 AMD Bulldozer Processor hits 8.429 GHz - New World Record!
9. 0:13:50 Oh joy the BIOS level trojan is finally here
10. 0:17:50 Windows 8 Developer Preview Build Sees Public Release At BUILD Conference
11. 0:23:45 This Podcast is brought to you by MSI Computer, and their all new Sandy Bridge Motherboards!
12. 0:24:37 IDF 2011: Intel Haswell Architecture Offers 20x Lower Standby Power
13. 0:27:08 IDF 2011: Intels Shows a PC Running on Solar Power
14. 0:30:10 IDF 2011: New Ivy Bridge Details from Mooly Eden Keynote
15. 0:35:27 SSD Update: 710 series
16. 0:38:31 IDF 2011: ASUS UX21 Ultrabook Still Sexy, I Still Want It
17. 0:39:34 Win a Free Drobo Storage Device at PC Perspective!!
18. 0:40:00 Hardware / Software Pick of the Week
    1. Ryan: Ultrabooks - I wants them
    2. Jeremy: Stop ruining many of the fond memories I have of my teenage years!
    3. Josh: gettin closer to that $1 per GB:  http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227552
    4. Allyn: mumble
19. 1-888-38-PCPER or podcast@pcper.com
20. http://pcper.com/podcast   
21. http://twitter.com/ryanshrout and http://twitter.com/pcper
22. Closing