AMD Names the Next PC Computing Thrill Ride: The AMD Phenom™ Processor

Business Wire,  May 14, 2007  

Tags: Advanced Micro Devices Inc., PC, processor

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AMD Makes First Public Demonstration of All-AMD Enthusiast Platform Codenamed "FASN8"

Industry's Only True x86 Quad-Core Architecture Paired with the ATI Radeon[TM] HD 2000 Series to Offer a Phenomenal Computing Experience

SUNNYVALE, Calif. -- Delivering a four-core foreshadowing of innovations to come for PC enthusiasts worldwide, AMD (NYSE: AMD) today unveiled the upcoming AMD Phenom[TM] processor family name and publicly demonstrated the first all-AMD enthusiast platform, codenamed "FASN8." The industry's

only true quad-core client processors are expected to deliver the ultimate visual experience, especially when paired with AMD's new DirectX 10 ATI Radeon[TM] HD 2000 series, which began shipping today (see related press release: "AMD Introduces the ATI Radeon[TM] HD 2000 Series, Delivering The Ultimate Visual Experience[TM] for Desktop and Mobile Platforms"). AMD expects true quad-core and dual-core AMD Phenom-based desktop systems will ship in the second half of 2007.

In a demonstration in San Francisco, AMD previewed an eight-core platform, codenamed "FASN8," pronounced "fascinate," to show the first AMD silicon-based next-generation eight-core platform. The demonstration platform includes two true quad-core AMD Phenom processors, the new DirectX 10 ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT, as well as an upcoming AMD next-generation, high-performance chipset, due in the second half of 2007. This platform illustrates AMD's leadership in developing a single solution with increased levels of integration to boost real-world performance.

"AMD has always enjoyed a great bond with the enthusiast community, and the introduction of the AMD Phenom processor family will take our relationship to new heights," said Bob Brewer, corporate vice president and general manager of AMD's desktop division. "We continue to focus on listening to and addressing users' evolving needs. AMD is confident the performance enhancements enabled by true quad-core client technology in computing-intensive environments will allow them to realize new possibilities and find new inspiration."

Only AMD Delivers True Quad-Core

AMD Phenom processors will be uniquely designed to facilitate intelligent uses of energy and system resources that are reliable, virtualization-ready and energy efficient, driving optimum performance-per-watt. All AMD Phenom processors will feature resources like an integrated DDR2 memory controller, HyperTransport[TM] technology links, and 128-bit Floating Point Units, for improved speed and performance in floating point calculations.

With the true quad-core design offered by the upcoming AMD Phenom processors, cores communicate on the die rather than through a front side bus external to the processor - a bottleneck inherent in other products that are packaging two dual-core chips to form quad-core processors. Additionally, AMD's Direct Connect Architecture on-chip ensures that all four cores have optimum access to the integrated memory controller and integrated HyperTransport links, so that performance scales well with the number of cores. This design is also highlighted by a unique shared L3 cache for quicker data access and Socket AM2 and Socket AM2+ infrastructure compatibility to enable a seamless upgrade path.

"AMD's quad-core processor rollout will put more computing horsepower at PC users' fingertips," observed Nathan Brookwood, research fellow at Insight 64. "Quad-core innovations come at a time when many users are finding that the combination of Microsoft Vista[TM], multi-threaded applications and DirectX 10 no longer delivers the crisp performance they experienced on last year's fastest systems running last year's software. The AMD Phenom processor's ability to deliver significantly more performance within the same power and thermal envelopes as its dual-core antecedents should make this quad-core processor a fitting follow-on to earlier AMD dual-core processor offerings."

AMD Phenom Processor Family

Enthusiasts, digital content creators and mainstream users alike are seeking more immersive, visual computing experiences - developing and navigating rich 3D worlds, finding new ways to create and share digital media and memories, and pushing the limits of productivity with intense multitasking. AMD Phenom processors are designed for the exceptional performance and capabilities customers want, employing state-of-the-art platforms and a next-generation processor architecture.

"Quad-core technology like the AMD Phenom processor family will enable Dell customers to enjoy their personal computers in entirely new ways," said Neil Hand, vice president marketing, Dell's Consumer Product Group. "With a quad-core CPU, the desktop PC can now truly act simultaneously as a server for home digital media devices, while keeping customers secure and productive in their mainstream use."

"As we demonstrated with AMD in San Francisco, Nero is pleased to be on the leading edge, delivering applications that are optimized to take advantage of quad-core processors," said John Tafoya, GM of Global Alliance at Nero. "The increased performance of AMD's latest processors, coupled with Nero's quad-core optimized applications is helping bring about Nero's vision of a true 'Liquid Media Revolution.'"