90nm 970's?

[Rincewind42]

Originally posted by dongmin
4. First of all, the G4 is already past the 1 ghz mark. Some people argue the 1.25 and 1.42 are simply 'overclocks.' That's a matter of semantics. Secondly, the G4 7457 is due out soon, running at 1.3 ghz. It consumes 10 watts at 1 ghz, making a dual-ghz config possible, if unlikely. The 17" seems to be a good candidate for dual CPUs. The 7457 is rumored to go up to 1.8 ghz later this year. So no, the G4 hasn't reached it's limit.

The 7457 isn't due until the end of the year, about when the 90nm 970 is expected to appear. And the 1.25 & 1.42 parts are likely to be running at 1.6v core voltage - i.e. disappate a huge amount of power to reach those speeds (hence the huge amount of cooling that goes through those systems). Finally, the 17" likely uses the 1.1v 7455, but the 15" probably uses the 1.3v 7455, which consumes about 20w.

 

[mathiasr]

Originally posted by Rincewind42
The 7457 isn't due until the end of the year, about when the 90nm 970 is expected to appear. And the 1.25 & 1.42 parts are likely to be running at 1.6v core voltage - i.e. disappate a huge amount of power to reach those speeds (hence the huge amount of cooling that goes through those systems). Finally, the 17" likely uses the 1.1v 7455, but the 15" probably uses the 1.3v 7455, which consumes about 20w.

http://www.motorola.com/mediacenter/news/detail/0,1958,2322_1901_23,00.html

excerpt : "Pricing and Availability
Alpha samples of the MPC7457 and MPC7447 PowerPC processors are available today to selected customers. General market sampling is planned for March, with production expected to commence in Q4 2003. Suggested retail pricing for the MPC7457 at 1 GHz is expected to be $189 (USD) in quantities of 10,000."

But you know, Apple uses PowerPCs that have not even been announced by Motorola.

I think the 970 will not appear in the PowerBook line until next year (in June rather than January), the problem is not only putting a new CPU on a small and flat motherboard (the PPC 970 is supposed to rely on ZIF sockets) but also a whole new chipset. Having a 800-900 MHz FSB and using fast DDR memory has an overall impact on heat and power consumption. It's not even sure that the PPC 970 has power saving modes.
Thus Apple could introduce the 7457 in its product line by September and use it 6 to 9 months.
They could also switch to a "yet to be announced" chip made by IBM that would still be a 32 bits PowerPC + AltiVec.

Just my 2 euro cents.

 

[Pedro Estarque]

I think the most interesting thing about this is that they are going for 90nm really fast, which means cooler and therefore faster 970 for the PM soon after their release. No more moto timeframe

 

[NicoMan]

Originally posted by mathiasr
http://www.motorola.com/mediacenter/news/detail/0,1958,2322_1901_23,00.html

excerpt : "Pricing and Availability
Alpha samples of the MPC7457 and MPC7447 PowerPC processors are available today to selected customers. General market sampling is planned for March, with production expected to commence in Q4 2003. Suggested retail pricing for the MPC7457 at 1 GHz is expected to be $189 (USD) in quantities of 10,000."

But you know, Apple uses PowerPCs that have not even been announced by Motorola.

I think the 970 will not appear in the PowerBook line until next year (in June rather than January), the problem is not only putting a new CPU on a small and flat motherboard (the PPC 970 is supposed to rely on ZIF sockets) but also a whole new chipset. Having a 800-900 MHz FSB and using fast DDR memory has an overall impact on heat and power consumption. It's not even sure that the PPC 970 has power saving modes.
Thus Apple could introduce the 7457 in its product line by September and use it 6 to 9 months.
They could also switch to a "yet to be announced" chip made by IBM that would still be a 32 bits PowerPC + AltiVec.

Just my 2 euro cents.

I'll have to agree with you on that. The 7457 makes more sense short-term for the PowerBooks. That would solve the heat issues on the 12" (with a 7447) and would probably allow them to put a more powerful graphics card because of the low power consumption of the 7457/7447.

NicoMan

 

[Flickta]

Back to the rumors page. First time since March (Well, visited it in april, but - no posts). "The Year of the Notebook" The year you spend waiting your 17 inch baby. The year when ONLY PB's are competitive. PM's aren't.

I'd say 15 inch PB will be updated and will have an AL case FW 800, BT and still a 1 Ghz G4. At the same time, there MAY BE some minor update of the 17 inch. Say, 1.2 Ghz or something. It happens when it happens. In June, if the claims are correct (and our beloved Apple won't stick to yet another revision of the G4 which is [sorry!] unfortunately likely) we'll see new 970 Towers. Together with AL PB's equipped with 970 - 1.2 (is there a 1 Ghz version? Then it will be in the 12 inch) Ghz. Towers - higher speeds, and dual, at least the Fastest and... you know... Ultimate.
That's it. My guess.

P.S. Want an Apple-branded Backlit, thin keys (like PB), Full-sized Keyboard (preferably with more than two USB ports) and a one-buttoned two-button mouse. Too lazy to turn on the light.