Well at least for the ATOM they could name it Helium, then Lithium, Beryllium, etc. for years to come
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Intel's Silverthorne Ultra-Mobile Proecessor Now Called 'Atom'
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Well at least for the ATOM they could name it Helium, then Lithium, Beryllium, etc. for years to come
proton, electron, neutron, you great physicist. And even if this was not small enough, there are still some further options
Yea, but unlike physics, can we split the atom and get more power from less energy?
I thought I'd paste in some fragments from a different discussion on Atom/Silverthorne from earlier this year on macrumors:
Atom/Silverthorne is definitely going to have some very strong competition from the ARM SoC world. The most likely competitors looks to be the next gen ARM Cortex family, including the Cortex-A9 (out-of-order core) which is based on a 65nm process and will run in a 0.25W TDP. This is a different ARM core than what is currently on the iPhone (iPhone has an ARM11) and one which will be more powerful, reaching speeds of 1Ghz or more. ARM even claims the Cortex-A9 will have the same power consumption as the iPhone "ARM11" chip, but increase performance by a factor of FOUR. There are both single-core and multi-core versions of the Cortex A9.
Initially, Atom/Silverthorne will be combined with the "Menlow" platform which has a seperate chipset and other IC components.
Second gen Atom chips will be integrated with the "Morrestown" platform which is a System-on-a-chip (SoC) design. This means that all the components needed to run the platform will be integrated onto one chip, including the processor, chipset/memory controller, Wifi/Ethernet, USB, graphics acceleration, video decoding, etc. This should allow the platform to further reduce power consumption. Based on all the information I've read, it looks like the 1st gen chip running on Menlow may be relegated to UMPC and Intel's new "Mobile Internet Device" (MID) type devices and not quite ready for the smartphone sphere. But with the introduction of the system-on-a-chip "Morrestown" platform, The 2nd generation Atom with it's reduce power consumption may be primetime for a new iPhone and other smartphones/small internet devices.
Here is how Jon Stokes of ArsTechnica ends his article from earlier this year.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/pos...side-intels-silverthorne-ultramobile-cpu.html)
" Having tried a few of Intel's Silverthorne-based prototypes, I must say that I wasn't particularly impressed. I own a Nokia N800 and an iPhone, both of which are ARM-based and both of which give a nearly complete Internet experience in a smaller form factor than Silverthorne will ever fit into. Indeed, at one point during a sit-down with Intel the rep told me that the warm, bulky prototype I was holding would give me the "full Internet in your pocket." I started chuckling, pulled out my iPhone, and said, "I already have that." He gamely responded that the iPhone's browser doesn't support Flash (in my opinion that's a feature, not a bug), but my point was made.
...So Silverthorne is really a transitional product; it's Intel's first, slightly awkward foray into a market that it intends to eventually dominate by doing what it always does, and that's produce ever smaller, cheaper, and faster chips that support the world's most popular ISA. This recipe may ultimately work for Intel in the embedded market the way that it has worked elsewhere, but that day won't come just yet....
Silverthorne is just the start of something, and to ARM, MIPS, and the other established chipmakers who currently own the embedded space, it's Intel's way of saying "game on."
Atom/Silverthorne specs:
- .01-.1 watts Idle, 0.6-2.0 watts depending on model
- performance equivalent to first generation Pentium M (Banias)
- 45nm
- 47M transistors
- 25mm^2
- 533MT/s FSB
- In-order execution with hyperthreading
Atom/Silverthorne is definitely going to have some very strong competition from the ARM SoC world. The most likely competitors looks to be the next gen ARM Cortex family, including the Cortex-A9 (out-of-order core) which is based on a 65nm process and will run in a 0.25W TDP. This is a different ARM core than what is currently on the iPhone (iPhone has an ARM11) and one which will be more powerful, reaching speeds of 1Ghz or more. ARM even claims the Cortex-A9 will have the same power consumption as the iPhone "ARM11" chip, but increase performance by a factor of FOUR. There are both single-core and multi-core versions of the Cortex A9.
Initially, Atom/Silverthorne will be combined with the "Menlow" platform which has a seperate chipset and other IC components.
Second gen Atom chips will be integrated with the "Morrestown" platform which is a System-on-a-chip (SoC) design. This means that all the components needed to run the platform will be integrated onto one chip, including the processor, chipset/memory controller, Wifi/Ethernet, USB, graphics acceleration, video decoding, etc. This should allow the platform to further reduce power consumption. Based on all the information I've read, it looks like the 1st gen chip running on Menlow may be relegated to UMPC and Intel's new "Mobile Internet Device" (MID) type devices and not quite ready for the smartphone sphere. But with the introduction of the system-on-a-chip "Morrestown" platform, The 2nd generation Atom with it's reduce power consumption may be primetime for a new iPhone and other smartphones/small internet devices.
Here is how Jon Stokes of ArsTechnica ends his article from earlier this year.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/pos...side-intels-silverthorne-ultramobile-cpu.html)
" Having tried a few of Intel's Silverthorne-based prototypes, I must say that I wasn't particularly impressed. I own a Nokia N800 and an iPhone, both of which are ARM-based and both of which give a nearly complete Internet experience in a smaller form factor than Silverthorne will ever fit into. Indeed, at one point during a sit-down with Intel the rep told me that the warm, bulky prototype I was holding would give me the "full Internet in your pocket." I started chuckling, pulled out my iPhone, and said, "I already have that." He gamely responded that the iPhone's browser doesn't support Flash (in my opinion that's a feature, not a bug), but my point was made.
...So Silverthorne is really a transitional product; it's Intel's first, slightly awkward foray into a market that it intends to eventually dominate by doing what it always does, and that's produce ever smaller, cheaper, and faster chips that support the world's most popular ISA. This recipe may ultimately work for Intel in the embedded market the way that it has worked elsewhere, but that day won't come just yet....
Silverthorne is just the start of something, and to ARM, MIPS, and the other established chipmakers who currently own the embedded space, it's Intel's way of saying "game on."
Atom/Silverthorne specs:
- .01-.1 watts Idle, 0.6-2.0 watts depending on model
- performance equivalent to first generation Pentium M (Banias)
- 45nm
- 47M transistors
- 25mm^2
- 533MT/s FSB
- In-order execution with hyperthreading
I wonder what would happen if Intel made a processor smaller than that one. What would they call it???
The real question is:
Intel Atom -> Intel Hadron -> Intel Quark -> Intel ?
.
Crazy Intel Brandnames
Seriously, what the hell were they thinking???
Intel starts their next generation CPUs by introducing: "Core Solo" and "Core Duo" mobile CPUs which had the codename "Yonah" and were the first processors produced on a 65nm process. However, unlike what their name would lead you to believe, these chips DID NOT use Intel's new 64-bit "Core" microarchitecture. They used an updated version of the older 32-bit Intel P6 architecture, which was used by the laptop "Pentium M" brand.
After the "Core Duo" series, the "Core 2 Duo" series was introduced.
These processors actually used Intel's new "Core" processor architecture, which is the current standard today.
But of course, Intel had to confuse things further. After they introduced "Core 2", they changed the branding of the older "Core Duo" chips to "Pentium dual-core" and "re-purposed" them for use in low-end budget laptops.
Along the same lines, Intel has made a mess of their "Centrino" branding.
first of all, they called all 4-5 generations of their wireless laptop platform "Centrino" without differentiating them. Then, in an attempt to do so, when they released the "Core Duo" processors, they relabeled "Centrino" to "Centrino Duo". With the latest generation of Centrino (codename Santa Rosa), they use "Centrino Pro" to refer to laptops with special management features (VPro technology), and "Centrino Duo" for everything else.
Now when they release the next Intel laptop platform, codenamed "Montevina", they are going to use the moniker "Centrino 2".
Can someone get these guys a new marketing department??
Seriously, what the hell were they thinking???
Intel starts their next generation CPUs by introducing: "Core Solo" and "Core Duo" mobile CPUs which had the codename "Yonah" and were the first processors produced on a 65nm process. However, unlike what their name would lead you to believe, these chips DID NOT use Intel's new 64-bit "Core" microarchitecture. They used an updated version of the older 32-bit Intel P6 architecture, which was used by the laptop "Pentium M" brand.
After the "Core Duo" series, the "Core 2 Duo" series was introduced.
These processors actually used Intel's new "Core" processor architecture, which is the current standard today.
But of course, Intel had to confuse things further. After they introduced "Core 2", they changed the branding of the older "Core Duo" chips to "Pentium dual-core" and "re-purposed" them for use in low-end budget laptops.
Along the same lines, Intel has made a mess of their "Centrino" branding.
first of all, they called all 4-5 generations of their wireless laptop platform "Centrino" without differentiating them. Then, in an attempt to do so, when they released the "Core Duo" processors, they relabeled "Centrino" to "Centrino Duo". With the latest generation of Centrino (codename Santa Rosa), they use "Centrino Pro" to refer to laptops with special management features (VPro technology), and "Centrino Duo" for everything else.
Now when they release the next Intel laptop platform, codenamed "Montevina", they are going to use the moniker "Centrino 2".
Can someone get these guys a new marketing department??
I like the new possibilities of mobile processors in cell phones and future iPods even.... I especially love the restriction that Intel is putting on the use of the chips.... I know the PC makers were dying to use them to reduce the price in their 15" notebooks and desktops just to sell some cheap, slow machines.
Oh guys. This thread has really touched my heart
Anyway, this Intel is good. Quantum physics is going to start messing up with them soon. Very soon
I wonder what would happen if Intel made a processor smaller than that one. What would they call it???
That's pretty small, almost 7 times smaller than a hydrogen atom.
They are dimensionless (=infinitely small) in the latest theory. Too bad they don't come in singles.
Ditto.
A mediator, interesting. They aren't colorless either, so need a fellow.
Which one? The tau is even bigger than the H atom!LEPTON! LEPTON!
67% true. I approve.proton, electron, neutron, you great physicist. And even if this was not small enough, there are still some further options
They ARE cool, but in a different league. Now, if Intel's processor used qubits, we'd have something in our hands (and they'd have a few Nobel prizes).I suppose Qubits might work.
Stripping the atom of the electrons doesn't make it appreaciably lighter. But if you are talking about size, then good (though unstable) choice!Nucleus !
(Photon or Electron will be good too)
There are some BIG hadrons, but I like your thinking.
Anyway, this Intel is good. Quantum physics is going to start messing up with them soon. Very soon
Seriously, what the hell were they thinking???
Intel starts their next generation CPUs by introducing: "Core Solo" and "Core Duo" mobile CPUs which had the codename "Yonah" and were the first processors produced on a 65nm process. However, unlike what their name would lead you to believe, these chips DID NOT use Intel's new 64-bit "Core" microarchitecture. They used an updated version of the older 32-bit Intel P6 architecture, which was used by the laptop "Pentium M" brand.
After the "Core Duo" series, the "Core 2 Duo" series was introduced.
These processors actually used Intel's new "Core" processor architecture, which is the current standard today.
But of course, Intel had to confuse things further. After they introduced "Core 2", they changed the branding of the older "Core Duo" chips to "Pentium dual-core" and "re-purposed" them for use in low-end budget laptops.
Along the same lines, Intel has made a mess of their "Centrino" branding.
first of all, they called all 4-5 generations of their wireless laptop platform "Centrino" without differentiating them. Then, in an attempt to do so, when they released the "Core Duo" processors, they relabeled "Centrino" to "Centrino Duo". With the latest generation of Centrino (codename Santa Rosa), they use "Centrino Pro" to refer to laptops with special management features (VPro technology), and "Centrino Duo" for everything else.
Now when they release the next Intel laptop platform, codenamed "Montevina", they are going to use the moniker "Centrino 2".
Can someone get these guys a new marketing department??
The initial move from Pentium 4 to Core was definitely confusing but it's not too bad now
Core 2 Quad refers to higher-end quad CPU processors
Core 2 Duo refers to mid to higher end dual core CPU processors
Pentium Dual Core refers to low end dual core CPU processors
Celeron refers to the lowest end CPU's
Granted, these are for mainstream CPU's and don't bother with Xeon's and what not, but to consumers, they would never know the entire family of codenames behind each of these
(e.g. Yorkfield and Kentsfield fore C2Q, Conroe Allendale Wofldale Merom and Penryn for Core 2 Duo's, smaller L2 cache'd Allendales for Pentium Dual core, etc.)
WHAT HAPPENED TO INTEL TODAY??
low eps for 1st Q?
How's that possible if there's no good competition from AMD?
low eps for 1st Q?
How's that possible if there's no good competition from AMD?
iPhone? Dont think so!
The iPhone as it stands today is extremely thin as compared to other "smartphones" out there and has a moderate weight.
I dont see why Apple would like to stuff the atom into the iPhone's sandwich type circuitry and make it fatter and heavier when its running EA's Spore flawlessly today!
The iPhone as it stands today is extremely thin as compared to other "smartphones" out there and has a moderate weight.
I dont see why Apple would like to stuff the atom into the iPhone's sandwich type circuitry and make it fatter and heavier when its running EA's Spore flawlessly today!