Intel Kentsfield quad core slated for Q1 2007

THE LATEST Intel roadmaps seen by the INQUIRER promise its OEMs that its Kentsfield quad core desktop processor will be available during the same month Microsoft will ship consumer Vista. Only the absurdly cynical would regard this as anything other than a complete coincidence.

And Intel will position the Kentsfield quad as both a "Viiv" chip and a regular desktop chip too. It is also regarded inside Intel as a good chip for current and future games.

Kentsfield will be Intel's replacement for the Conroe Extreme Edition, now expected to be released in the third quarter of this year. It has also fleshed out the kind of PC you'll need for Viiv versions 1.5 and 1.6 - which include Cointreau Extreme Edition, an NCQ S-ATA drive, and Intel high def audio 5.1 as a minimum. It reckons Viiv 1.5 and 1.6 will also work OK with Cointreau E6000 and E4000 chips, as well as Pentium D 900s and 800s. Recommended chipsets include the 975X with ICH7DH or P965 Express chipsets with ICH8DH.

The 965 includes Intel AMT with circuit breaker, supports DDR2-800 and a front side bus of 1066MHz, while the Q963 is a more basic beast and only supports DDR2-667. This is in contradistinction to the G965 which uses Intel "Clear Video" tech, and supports DDR2-800 with a front side bus.

And of course the dreaded remote control which Microsoft appears to have convinced Intel is absolutely necessary for any Viiv box.

Of course you could always opt to use the Merom T5000 and T7000 sequences for your Viiv box, which also need the remote control and the NCQ S-ATA hard drive. It will be interesting to benchmark these kind of Viiv boxes against the Cointreau or the Kentsfried. I daresay we will see such things emerge. Kentsfield will use the LGA 775 socket.

Meanwhile, Intel has priced up its Cointreaus for the Q3 launch. The E6700 will cost $531, the E6600 $315, the E6400 $240, and the E6300 $210. Prices of the 960 will drop to $315, from its 30 April launch price of $530. The weird 925 with no VT will cost $177 when it's introduced in the third quarter. µ