Intel has launched the Core 2 Extreme QX6800, the company’s twelfth quad-core processor offering, aimed at gaming fans and computer enthusiasts. The Core 2 Extreme QX6800 runs at 2.93GHz, which is the fastest native clock speed yet reached with the Intel Core microarchitecture for the quad-core desktop to date.

The Intel Core 2 Extreme processor QX6800 is also designed to be appealing to media users and developers; Adobe, Cakewalk, DivX, Sony Creative Software and other software companies have developed applications that use all four cores, enabling media professionals to capture creativity quickly and reliably, according to Intel.

The new chip will also reduce waiting time for high-definition media editing jobs such as video encoding, said Eric Kim, senior vice president and general manager of Intel’s Digital Home Group, in a statement. According to the Intel’s figures, the Core 2 Extreme quad-core processor QX6800 is up to 65% faster than the Intel Core 2 Extreme dual-core processor X6800 when encoding video.

Intel last week launched two low-power versions of its Core 2 Duo processor, the U7600 and U7500 chips.

With theCore 2 Extreme QX6800 released, Intel is looking to increase the performance gap with rival Advanced Micro Devices, which is also expected to release its quad-core competitor product in the middle of this year.

The competition with AMD has resulted in both the companies launching newer products. But unlike Intel’s product line, which is comprised of two duo-core chips, AMD’s upcoming offering will be four individual cores on one chip. It remains to be seen whether that approach significantly enhances performance.

Last year, AMD outsold Intel in dual-core chips. However, through price cuts and new product, Intel has regained its momentum. AMD on Monday lowered revenue expectations for the first quarter, blaming it on cuts in the average selling price of its chips and lower sales. Analysts say the company is feeling the affect of locking horns with a richer rival.

“The performance and technology leadership we are delivering with our enthusiast quad-core processor lineup is a direct result of the reliability provided by Intel’s manufacturing and engineering strength,” said Kim. “This translates to user benefits such as better gameplay with more intelligent computer-generated opponents and less wait time for demanding high-definition media editing.”

The Intel Core 2 Extreme processor QX6800 is built on Intel’s 65-nanometer process, has an 8 Mbyte cache and supports a 1066-MHz system bus. The processor is available now at a cost of US$1,199.

Related:

Entry was posted on Monday, April 9th, 2007 at 11:48 pm under Intel, Technology.

Read more entries by Ruben Francia.
Stumble It!