The device would enable performance per watt as low as 1 watt, said the chipmaker during an analyst day at its Sunnyvale, California-based headquarters.
Another new CPU core the company is working on is Bulldozer, which would be used to power small form-factor computers, as well as servers and desktops. Both are part of AMD’s Fusion project, which seeks to merge AMD’s processor technology with ATI’s graphics capabilities. AMD, of course, acquired ATI last year.
The first processor product that will combine CPU and GPU capabilities, code-named Falcon, for notebooks is due in 2009. It would have as many as four CPU cores with an integrated shading architecture and DirectX GPU core for graphics processing. Falcon will be part of AMD’s forthcoming Eagle bundle of notebook silicon.
The company also reiterated its plans to introduce 45-nanometer desktop processors next year, which would trial the launch of Intel’s 45-nm product launches slated for later this year.
Our View
The notebook processor market is fiercely competitive, but Bobcat fills a gaping hole in AMD’s lineup. If AMD delivers on its integrated graphics promise, however, Bobcat as part of its Eagle mobile bundle may potentially give Intel’s Centrino a run for its money.
