Intel low power embedded Sandy Bridge coming in Q1’11

Core i mobile derived processors

WE’RE SURE THAT this isn’t coming as a surprise to anyone, but Intel will be offering embedded processors based on its Sandy Bridge core and the first models should appear around the same time as Intel’s mobile and desktop counterparts. However, the company is also readying a set of low power processors based on the mobile Sandy Bridge processors which will be slightly different from their mobile counterparts.

Most notably is ECC memory support, although not all of the embedded processors will support it. It’s a feature that’s shared with some of the low power embedded Arrandale processors and it’s a feature required in some market segments. The processors will be paired up with the QM67 chipsets which add support for Intel’s AMT 7.0 spec which is a set of system management features also found on Intel’s corporate and business computer platforms.

As for new processor models, according to the information we have at hand, Intel is readying six new Core i models, of which all except two will support ECC memory. Starting from the bottom we have the dual core, Core i5 2515E which sports ECC memory support, a base clock speed of 2.5GHz, but it will turbo all the way to 3.2GHz. We don’t know which graphics core this CPU will feature, but the base clock speed will be 650MHz and it will turbo to 1050MHz which is a fair bit slower than any of its mobile counterparts. This CPU also features 3MB of L3 cache and a TDP of 35W. The non ECC model has exactly the same spec, minus ECC support of course, and it’s called the Core i5 2510E.

On the high-end we find a pair of quad core, Core i7 models and again we’re looking at one with and one without ECC support. The ECC sporting model is called the Core i7 2715QE and it’s clocked at 2.1GHz with a turbo frequency of 3GHz. Again, we don’t know which graphics core it’ll feature, but it’s clocked at 650MHz and it will turbo to 1100MHz, again slower than its mobile counterparts. It has 6MB of L3 cache and a 45W TDP and as you might’ve already guessed, the ECC less version is called the Core i7 2710QE.

Finally we have a low power and an ultra-low power model, although, besides the model names, TDP, ECC support and the fact that we’re talking about dual core processors here, we don’t have a whole lot of details to share with you. The low power model is called the Core i7 2655LE and it has a 25W TDP while the ultra-low power model is called the Core i7 2610UE and has a mere 17W TDP. The only really interesting aspect is that Intel should have mobile counterparts based on both of these cores, but from what we know, the low power and ultra-low power models aren’t set to launch until sometime in the second quarter of next year.

Judging by this, it seems like Intel has decided to reduce the number of low power embedded processors in its line-up, as the company is currently offering no less than 11 different solutions based on the Arrandale core. Most of those will still be available for quite some time, as the embedded platforms come with a certain lifetime commitment, usually of about five years, and this means that Intel can’t just phase out what’s on offer as it pleases.S|A

The following two tabs change content below.