14 DAY TRIAL // Intel will soon release a new Core i5 processors, based on the company's recently introduced Sandy Bridge architecture, that will redefine the line between the Core i5 and Core i3 product families as it packs technologies common to both of these CPU series.
The new processors will be called the Core i5-2390T and, as ComputerBase has managed to find out, will only be available to the OEM crowd.
What makes the 2390T so special is that it will be the only Core i5 CPU in Intel's desktop lineup to feature dual processing cores (all other desktop Core i5 chips are quad-core) as well as Hyper-Threading support.
Until now, in the desktop space, Intel has reserved Hyper-Threading for the Core i7 and the Core i3 lines.
In addition, the chip will feature Turbo Boost as well as AES-NI and vPro support, making it more than just a re-branded Core i3 processor, further blurring the lines between these two product families.
As far as its other features go, the Core i5-2390T is clocked at 2.7GHz, and can go up to 3.5GHz thanks to Turbo Boost, features 3MB of L3 cache memory, a 1300MHz memory bus and a rather low 35W TDP.
Graphics are provided by an Intel HD 2000 on-die GPU which has a maximum speed of 1100MHZ and is powered by 12 EUs (a mix of shaders, cores and execution units).
Since a boxed version of the chip won't make its way to the market, pricing will be negotiated separately between original equipment manufacturers and Intel. A release date for the Core i5-2390T hasn't been established yet.
In the second quarter of 2011, Intel plans to release a new batch of Sandy Bridge processors, including a series of Pentium models as well as the Core i5-2405S and Core i3-2105.