AMD’s Processor Roadmap Revealed

The wait for Phenom II might be a little rough, but we’re now closer than ever to launch, and thanks to AMD’s updated roadmaps, we know just how close. According to the roadmap, which covers the entire first-half of 2009, AMD will be releasing a total of fourteen models, starting off with two Quad-Cores next month. We’ll then see follow-up chips the following month which will also introduce tri-core models. Dual-Cores will be released at the end of this cycle, in June.

Along with the new releases will of course be the updated number scheme, which turns out to be very similar to how Intel is currently handling their Core i7 models. The first two CPUs next month, for example, will be Phenom II X4 940 and 920… the exact same numbers being used by Intel’s own current mainstream offerings. These will be clocked at 3GHz and 2.8GHz, respectively, and include 8MB of total cache.

While the first releases will use the AM2+ socket, follow-up releases in February will introduce the first AM3 chips. There, the X4 910 2.6GHz (8MB Cache), X4 810 2.6GHz (6MB Cache) and X4 805 2.5GHz (6MB Cache) are the three Quad-Core offerings, while the X3 720 2.8GHz (7.5MB Cache) and X3 710 2.6GHz (7.5MB Cache) will be the first two tri-cores with the Phenom II moniker.

Moving past that, April will bring a new model, the X4 945, which features identical specs as the X4 940, but is designed for the AM3 platform. April will also introduce the return of the Athlon branding. The initial models will be available in both Quad-Core and Tri-Core varieties, but are more budget-oriented. Athlon Dual-Cores will come in June, as already mentioned.

Pricing isn’t yet known, but we can assume they’ll be quite competitive compared to Intel’s Core 2 offerings. As we found out the other day, the server-equivalents don’t manage to dominate Intel’s Xeon’s, but AMD has made large improvements to their architecture and that alone is reason to be excited. It’s going to be hard to wait to see how these CPUs handle in regular desktop scenarios… information that’s been rather scarce.

The launch date for the 45nm AM2+ quad-core Deneb is now reported to be January 8; the CPU was originally expected in mid-December. When February 2009 rolls around, AMD will unveil six socket AM3 45nm processors including the Phenom II X4 925 with 6MB of L3 cache and a Phenom II X4 910 with the same cache. A pair of 4MB L3 cache processors, the Phenom II X4 810 and Phenom II X3 710 will debut the same month. Also tipping up in February will be a pair of 6MB L3 cache CPUs including the Phenom X3 720 and the Phenom II X3 710.