14 DAY TRIAL // The FM2+ socket has been welcoming new accelerated processing units (APUs) for months now, of varying levels of ability, but it appears that Advanced Micro Devices has decided that just APUs won't cut it.
Which is to say, the Sunnyvale, California-based company is preparing to release an FM2+ processing unit that is not an accelerated processing unit. Instead, it is a central processing unit that completely lacks integrated graphics.
The chip in question bears the name of Athlon X4 860L and is a quad-core unit with a base frequency of 3.7 GHz, plus a Turbo Core maximum capability of 4 GHz.
Turbo Core is a dynamic overclocking technology that actively monitors the load on the CPU, and pushes the chip above the normal limit when needed.
Speaking of which, overclockers might want to give the new chip their full consideration once it finally reaches the market on September 1. That's when reports say it will debut, along with an A-Series APU which we will check out later.
You see, since the Athlon X4 860K is based on the Steamroller architecture and doesn't have integrated graphics, it could make for a very competent overclocking part. Indeed, the TDP of 95W provides a significant headroom for clock tweaking.
That said, in addition to the 3.70 GHz base frequency and 4 GHz boost state, the newcomer has L2 a cache memory of 4 MB.
There is a second processor coming on September 1, an accelerated processing unit this time, complete with an integrated GPU built on the 28nm manufacturing process.
It will be a dual-core unit with up to 4 GHz clock, 1 MB L2 cache memory, and the Radeon HD 8470D integrated graphics care (192 Stream Processors). The TDP will be a mere 65W. Essentially, the A4-7300 (that's the APU's name) will be a low-end chip for office computers.
Advanced Micro Devices has not confirmed this information, but it's not like we have that much time to wait for the release at this point. Indeed, it is strange that only two new AMD chips are coming, considering that this is the back-to-school season when pretty much everyone tries to launch something new. Especially with IFA 2014 around the corner (September 5-10).
Then again, Advanced Micro Devices won't have much of a presence at the show. And we'd know, since we asked. Thus, all eyes are still on the upcoming August 23 launch event on Saturday. If nothing else, we'll see the Tonga on a consumer graphics card.