AMD Energy Efficient Processors Reach Retail

by Anton Shilov
07/06/2006 | 10:10 PM

Microprocessors of Advanced Micro Devices with trimmed power consumption, which were introduced in May, have finally reached the retail market. The new AMD Athlon 64, Athlon 64 X2 and Sempron processors are currently available in several stores in Japan. U.S. price-search engines, however, do not locate the appropriate microprocessors.

A number of stores in Japan have begun to sell energy efficient versions of AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ (2000MHz, 512KB level-two cache per core [1MB of L2 cache in total]) and 4200+ models (2200MHz, 512KB level-two cache per core [1MB of L2 cache in total]), which consume 65W, down from typical 89W thermal design power (TDP). According to Akiba PC Hotline, the energy efficient AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ and 4200+ cost ¥38 844 – ¥40 980 ($337 – $355) and ¥50 780 – ¥53 340 ($442 – $463), respectively. By contrast, typical versions of the dual-core 3800+ and 4200+ processor sell for prices starting from ¥34 800 ($302) and ¥42780 ($370), respectively.

Additionally, several computer shops in Tokyo have initiated trading with energy efficient microprocessors with TDP of just 35W. Currently, AMD Athlon 64 3500+ (2200MHz, 512KB L2 cache), Sempron 3400+ (1800MHz, 256KB L2 cache)and Sempron 3200+ (1800MHz, 128KB L2 cache) can be acquired for ¥28 800 – ¥29 980 ($250 – $260),¥18 480 – ¥18 980 ($160 – $165),¥14 800 – ¥15 540 ($128 – $135), respectively.

The new processors are designed for socket AM2 platforms and support DDR2 memory. AMD produces its energy efficient lineup of microprocessors at its fabs in Germany using 90nm process technology.

The chips are made to compete against Intel’s forthcoming Core 2 processors for desktops, which will have low power consumption, yet, are projected to offer pretty high performance.