AMD outlines future processors to compete with Atom
updated 10:10 pm EST, Thu November 13, 2008
AMD answer to Atom CPUs
AMD announced several new projects that will compete with Intel's Atom processor late next year, according to ExtremeTech. The company expects to add the Caspian and Conesus processors sometime next year. Both products are intended for use in mini-notebooks or netbooks, featuring the same 45-nm architecture of the new Shanghai processor announced earlier this week. Dual-cores will be featured in both, along with DDR-2 memory support.
Caspian will be suitable for small notebooks, and will offer two megabytes of cache. Conesus is designed for even smaller devices, using ball grid array (BGA) packaging, but will offer only a single megabyte of cache.
AMD also plans to move into quad-core processors for small notebooks in 2010, with the replacement of Caspian by Champlain. The next netbook processor, Geneva, will still be a dual-core item like its predecessor. Both will allegedly offer two megabytes of cache and DDR-3 memory support.
The company extended its forecast into 2011, with the suggestion that the netbook processors will use the Ontario dual-core chip with integrated graphics capabilities. The GPU integration may cross over into the desktop and notebook processors, with the Liano quad-core component. The future flagship will be Orochi, offering eight megabytes of cache and over four cores.
