At the demonstration of the world’s first x86 quad-core microprocessor Intel’s chief executive officer unveiled ambitious plans to ship as much as 60 million of dual-core processors this year, which is expected to significantly popularize the multi-core technology in general and expand the reach of dual-core chips for consumers in particular.
“Intel expects to sell 60 million dual-core chips this year, accounting for about a quarter of total processor sales” chief technology officer Justin Rattner is reported to have said.
Last year Intel promised to supply millions of dual-core processors. The company had only desktop dual-core chips in its lineup in 2005 and only late in the year introduced server-oriented dual-core processors for dual-processor and multi-processor platforms.
This year Intel will ship dual-core central processing units (CPUs) for desktop, server and mobile computers, which will give those chips a much broader market than before. Moreover, this year Intel Corp. is set to introduce a new micro-architecture along with processors code-named
Back in 2005, Intel used 90nm process technology to produce its dual-core chips, which did not allow the company to maintain aggressive pricing on them. In 2006 Intel ramps up its 65nm manufacturing process, which allows manufacturing microprocessors more cost-efficiently. As a result, the output of dual-core processors rises and dual-core CPUs become more affordable to customers.
“Clearly the momentum around multi-core is building,” Mr. Rattner added, Reuters reports.





