14 DAY TRIAL // Intel has already unveiled the pricing for its upcoming initial quad-core Core i7 chips, which are based on the new 45 nanometer Nehalem micro-architecture. The first roll-out will include three desktop processors, code-named Bloomfield, dubbed Core i7 920, 940 and 965 Extreme. These chips feature a 263mm² die which includes 731m transistors. The prices for the new CPUs are set at $284, $562 and $999 for 1000 unit shipments.
As we reported a few days ago, the chips can already be seen at some on-line retailers. Earlier this month, the company announced that the chip started shipping to partners and that it would be launched sometime in November, but did not detail a specific launch date. Even so, it seems that the chips will be unleashed around November 17th.
The Core i7 920 and 940 processors feature core clock speeds of 2.66GHz and 2.93GHz, respectively, and offer support for 1066MHz DDR3 memory modules. The 965 Extreme CPU will come clocked at 3.2GHz, while its integrated memory controller will allow it to connect directly to 1333MHz DDR3 memory kits. As already reported, the new Core i7 parts will link to three channels of memory. The chips include 8MB of L3 cache which is shared across all four cores, while each core featuring its own complement of L1 and L2 cache, the latter being 256KB in size.
Details on the new Nehalem architecture emerged to the web quite some time ago, and most of you are probably already familiar with the novelties brought by the chips. They will go with Intel's new X58 chipset to which the Core i7 connects via a 25.6GB/s QuickPath Interconnect (QPI) bus. Nevertheless, the X58 has new features as well, including 36 PCI Express 2.0 lanes, which allow for a variety of graphics card configurations, and a 2GB/s bus to Intel's ICH10 southbridge, meant to handle the USB, Gigabit Ethernet, HD audio and SATA ports.