Intel's Kessler will be Prescott reference platform

This is codenamed Kessler, a reference platform which will have "early" silicon in the fourth quarter of this year, suggesting that Intel might be slipping a little on delivery of its 90 nanometer Prescott platform.

System stacks are likely to be available in June, while by August Intel will have a model which is close to finished.

Meanwhile, Intel believes that all mobo makers will integrate Serial ATA during this year but the drives are still a little thin on the ground, we think. Maxtor, for example, seems to have put its launch date further back. But Intel thinks most of the hard drive makers will have S-ATA drives this year and native drives early next year. µ