They are server units based on the Piledriver architecture

Dec 4, 2012 08:30 GMT  ·  By

As we said would happen a short time ago, Advanced Micro Devices has made the official introduction of its entry-level and mid-range Opteron server processors.

In its press release, AMD says that the Opteron 3300 series are enterprise-class chips with a low power envelope and a price similar to that of desktop CPUs.

Meanwhile, the Opteron 4300 are strong enough to justify an infrastructure upgrade for companies that don't want to pay what Opteron 6300 chips demand.

Spec-wise, the Opteron 3300 chips have up to eight cores each, the clock frequency reaching as high as 2.8 GHz base and 3.8 GHz Turbo Core.

The AMD-P power management feature “maximizes performance-per-watt,” while AMD-V technology makes virtualization cheap.

Also, all 3300 units get dual-channel memory (1866 MHz), four DIMMs per CPU (32 GB max) and HyperTransport technology. The TDP (thermal design power) can be as low as 25W.

The Opteron 4300 line also has up to 8 cores, but the clock speeds are of 3.4 GHz / 3.8 GHz base/turbo, and the minimum TDP is 35W.

The rest of the specs are the same as above, save for two things: up to six DIMMs are supported, and there is support for ultra-low voltage 1.25V memory.

All the new CPUs are based on the Piledriver architecture, which "provides optimized performance, power and price for today's customer," according to Suresh Gopalakrishnan, general manager, server business unit, AMD.

"These new processors are ideal for cloud providers, web hosts and small- and medium-sized businesses who want to address their space and power constraints. With a simple upgrade, existing customers can obtain more performance and improved energy efficiency and new customers will obtain compelling value and ROI," he says.

The product pages of the Opteron 4300 series and Opteron 3300 series have more information.