After much industry anticipation, Intel Corp. launched the latest additions to its Itanium 2 processor line Monday, designed as lower-cost and lower-power alternatives for dual-processor servers and workstations.
The Santa Clara, Calif.-based company released the 1.40GHz Intel Itanium 2 processor, with a 1.5MB level three (L3) cache – an addition to the company’s Madison family of processors- which the company said offers the current leading price performance for technical computing applications.
The 1.40GHz processor is intended for dual-processor, clustered, and high-performance technical machines, and is available now for US$1,172 for 1,000-unit quantities, according to Intel.
Furthering Intel’s plan to expand the reach of Itanium 2, the company also announced the long-awaited processor formerly known as Deerfield. The Low Voltage 1.0GHz Intel Itanium 2 processor with a 1.5MB L3 cache is designed for low-end and front-end enterprise systems, and comes with a maximum power consumption of 62 watts – less than half the power consumption of existing Itanium 2 processors, according to an Intel statement. The 1.0GHz processor is available now for US$744 in 1,000-unit quantities.
Intel’s goal is to power “virtually all facets of the data centre” with the new processors, from entry-level systems to large database servers, Richard Dracott, group marketing director for Intel’s Enterprise Platforms Group said in a statement. With the two newest additions, corporate customers now have choice for data-intensive and business-critical enterprise solutions, Dracott added.
Database solutions from IBM Corp., Microsoft Corp., and Oracle Corp., along with enterprise and front-end server applications from EMC/Legato Systems, Symantec Corp., and BMC Corp. are already optimized for the Intel Itanium processor line, the company said.
Dell Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and IBM will also ship server and workstations based on the Itanium processor family starting Monday. Dell’s PowerEdge 3250 servers and IBM’s dual-processor xSeries 382 will incorporate the Deerfield processor, and are priced at US$4,999 and US$8,800 respectively. The dual-processor version of the PowerEdge 32450, which will run the new Madison chips will start at US$8,499. IBM’s dual-processor xSeries 381 running the Madison chips will start at US$9,999.
Deerfield will replace the 900MHz processor that currently powers HP’s zx2000 workstation, which lists for US$3,300. For more information, visit www.intel.com.
-With files fromthe IDG News Service