下一代Intel高端桌面平台明年三季度上市 处理器针脚数将发生变化

邮差

据透露，Intel将于明年第三季度推出取代现有高端Core i7 LGA1366平台的新产品，不过由于新平台处理器内含的功能有所增加，因此新平台处理器的插槽方式将不会继续使用LGA1366插槽，且无法与现有的平台针脚兼容。
另外，Intel届时还将推出名为“X68”的平台芯片组与新款处理器搭配，新款处理器将支持四通道DDR3内存的配置，不过每通道所支持的内存条数将降为一条，而且所支持的内存颗粒密度也会有所下降。另外芯片组将追加内含的PCI-E接口数目，而且有可能升级到PCI-E3.0接口规范。
目前还不清楚下一代Core i7平台的处理器插槽针脚数，不过据悉新Core i7的首款型号将具备原生8核/16线程设计，并将基于SandyBridge新架构。
Rumour: New socket to replace LGA1366 due in 2011
Here’s a quick bit of overheard info for you – Intel’s replacement for its current high-end Core i7 CPU range will arrive in Q3 2011, so if you’re planning an LGA1366 upgrade now (perhaps with a Core-i7 930) then it’s still got plenty of life left in it.
The bad news is, there will be no compatibility between current LGA1366 Core i7s and the new socket. Intel is planning on launching a new socket for every new major CPU revision as it’s continuing to incorporate more and more features into future CPUs, which means pin-counts and sockets will inevitably change.
Our sources in Taiwan also told us that the new chipset that will accompany this socket - inevitably being called "X68", although this is far from being an official name - will feature four DDR3 DIMM channels. It will only support one DIMM per channel as this maximises memory bandwidth, but memory density will be overall lower than current LGA1366, Core i7 systems as there will only be four sockets versus the six you see on current X58 boards. The chipset will include more PCI-E lanes of some description, either 2.0 or 3.0.
No details on the socket pin-count or size are available yet, however we do know the first CPUs will be a native eight-core, 16-thread design (as seen in the just launched Xeon X7650), based on the upcoming Sandy Bridge architecture.
The good news is for those who upgraded to LGA1366 in late 2008 or even last year have had a fantastic investment of their money as we expect their systems will continue to be the fastest products available until the replacement late next year. Interested in saving up for a new 8-core behemoth? Does this change your upgrade cycle? Let us know your thoughts, in the forum.

Intel's next generation platform to replace LGA1366 will arrive late next year, so an upgrade to the Core i7-930 is still a good investment.