As previously reported, Advanced Micro Devices is on its way to launching a new series of processors, dubbed Phenom II. The line is manufactured under the 45 nanometer technology process and is based on the company's Deneb core, which is said to deliver significant improvements over the older 65nm parts from AMD. The chips are meant to bring the firm back into competition with Intel, the largest chip maker in the world, and the latest news point towards a possible success.

Yesterday we learned that the first Phenom II chips were due for January 8th next year, a little more than a month from now, and we also dropped an eye on the naming scheme and specifications of the products. Interestingly enough, AMD chose to name the parts the same way its archrival Intel did with its recently launched Core i7 processors, based on the company's new architecture code-named Nehalem.

The first Phenoms II that we'll see on January 8th will come under the name Phenom II X4 920, 2.8GHz, and Phenom II X4 940, 3GHz, both quad-core chips, as their denominations suggest. As many of you may already know, Intel launched its Core i7 chips with similar branding, namely Core i7-920, 2.66GHz, and Core i7-940, 2.93.

The naming of the processors may become somehow confusing for users, as both AMD chips and Intel ones are 45nm parts and run at close speeds. Moreover, the chips also feature the same amount of cache memory, 8MB, expected to leverage their performance to new levels. However, we have to admit that Intel's products have the advantage of already being available, while AMD's parts are still to come.

Even so, if future tests and benchmarks show that the Sunnyvale company released competitive products, and there are good chances that will happen, then we'll probably see some battles for the microprocessor market next year, something we've somehow been missing lately.