| Intel announces first Atom chips |
Apr. 02, 2008
 Accompanied by two dozen partners with prototype designs based on its new chips, Intel today announced five models in its new "Centrino Atom" line of mobile and embedded processors. The Z500-series chips, formerly "Silverthorne," range from 800MHz to 1.8GHz, with TDPs between 0.65W and 2.4W.
(Click for larger view of Atom and its large SCH companion chip)
Announced at the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) in Shanghai, China, the new Intel parts are priced initially between $45 and $160 in 1,000-unit quantities. They are accompanied to market by a comparatively large "SCH" (system controller hub) built on 130nm process technology. As the only chipset available currently for the Atom parts, the Poulsbo SCH is included for free in Atom's list price. However, its large size (the initial package seems to be about 485 square millimeters, or 22mm square) could limit Atom's appeal in small devices, such as mobile phones for now.
Hope may be around the corner, however, as Intel also announced in Shanghai a system-on-chip (SoC) Atom model codenamed "Moorestown." "Moore" about that below.
| No. | SKU | MHz | Power (W) | FSB
Features | L2
Cache | Die
Size | Kit
(CPU+SCH)
Pricing
(per 1000
units) |
|---|
| TDP Power | Ave. Power | Idle Power
(C6) |
|---|
| 1. | Z500 | 800MHz | 0.65W | 160mW | 80mW | 400MHz | 512K | 7.8mm
x
3.1mm | $45 | | 2. | Z510 | 1.1GHz | 2W | 220mW | 100mW | 400MHz | $45 | | 3. | Z520 | 1.33GHz | 2W | 220mW | 100mW | 533MHz | $65 | | 4. | Z530 | 1.6GHz | 2W | 220mW | 100mW | 533MHz | $95 | | 5. | Z540 | 1.86GHz | 2.4W | 220mW | 100mW | 533MHz | $160 |
Initial Atom SKUs
(Source: Intel)
Two of the five SKUs -- the Z530 (1.6GHz) and the Z510 (1.1GHz) -- are embedded platform designs with seven-year lifecycle support. "Average" power benchmarking in the chart above was done on Windows XP, except for the low-end part, which was tested with MIDLinux.
Competing with ARM
Atom is meant to compete with ARM in inexpensive computing appliances, low-cost laptops, UMPCs (ultra-mobile PCs), and especially MIDs (mobile Internet devices). According to WindowsForDevices.com's most recent reader survey, ARM-based CPUs have been wresting increasing market share from x86-compatible processors. When we asked respondents which CPUs they expected to be in their company's embedded designs through 2009, more than 36 percent of those answering picked ARM, and only 28 percent picked x86.
What CPUs do you expect to be in your company's embedded designs during the next two years
(Click to enlarge)
More power-efficient x86 chips could help Intel stay relevant, as spending on mobile devices begins to overtake spending on traditional servers and desktops in the years to come. The Centrino Atom processors maintain compatibility with Intel's Core 2 Duo instruction set, says Intel, and include support for hyper-threading, virtualization, and Intel Digital Media Boost (SSE3) technologies. The SSE4 multimedia extensions are not supported, however.
Atom was reportedly designed at Intel's Austin, Tex.-based facility, rather than at the Israel-based facility where Pentium M -- and hence Core and Core2 -- were designed. Based on a new dual-issue micro-architecure with in-order execution and a 16-stage pipeline, the Atom is Intel's first in-order part since the original Pentium.
Whereas the Pentium 60 had 3.1 million transisters, and a die size of nearly 300 square millimeters, Atom chips have 47 million transistors on a die area of 25 square mm (although the initial package appears to be larger -- about 13 x 14mm). Intel says Atom offers an "80 percent reduction" in footprint compared to previous three-chip packages based on the Celeron M-based Ultra Low Voltage 423 with Mobile Intel 945GME Express. They also use a tenth the power of Intel's mobile Core2 chips, according to Intel figures.
Atom's SCH companion chip integrates northbridge and southbridge along with OpenGL 3D graphics, support for DirectX 9L, and hardware-accelerated 720p and 1080i video decode. The IDE controller has a parallel rather than a relatively more power-hungry serial ATA interface. I/O options included PCI Express, SDIO, and USB Host and Client, says Intel. Supporting both Linux and Windows, the chipsets come with 400MHz or 533MHz FSB buses and support up to 1GB of RAM. The "Atom Centrino" silicon family also includes optional WiFi, WiMax, and other peripheral components, including a penny-sized, 16GB solid state disk option.
Early adopters
Currently, about 20 companies are designing boards and systems based on the parts. Early adopters in the embedded space include Beckhoff Automation, Applied Data Systems, and RadiSys, according to Intel.
A variety of MIDs and UMPCs based on the Centrino Atom platform were on hand at the Shanghai event, at least in concept form. Intel announced that Centrino Atom-based MIDs should arrive starting later this quarter, with more models shipping later in the year.
The MID vendors include Aigo, Asus, BenQ, Clarion, Fujitsu, Gigabyte, Hanbit, KJS, Lenovo, LG-E, NEC, Panasonic, Samsung, Sharp, Sophia Systems, Tabletkoisk, Toshiba, USI, WiBrain, and Yuk Yung. Intel also announced that the following service providers have agreed to deploy Centrino Atom-based MIDs on their networks: China Mobile, China Unicom, Clearwire, Korea Telecom, NTT DoCoMo, SK Telecom, Sprint, T-Mobile, UQ Communications, and Willcom.
        
Atom Centrino devices from...
(L-R) Aigo, Asus, BenQ, Clarion, Compal, Electrobit, Lenovo, LG, Panasonic
(Click on Panasonic for further information, and on others to enlarge)
Because the Centrino Atom combines x86 compatibility with relatively low processing power, some observers consider it unsuitable for running Windows Vista. Panasonic has chosen Vista for its Toughbook CF-U1 UMPC (shown above, lower right), but last month, one Intel executive was quoted as saying Atom-based devices will run Windows XP or Linux instead.
A shadow has been cast over Windows XP's future by Microsoft's official roadmap, which calls for OEM and retail sales of XP to end in the U.S. by the end of June. However, in Sept. 2007, the company said a Windows XP Starter Edition will be available in some overseas markets through June 2010, "since some of the systems that ship in emerging markets don't meet the requirements for Windows Vista." Persistent rumors suggest Microsoft will soon extend Windows XP's lifecycle more widely.
In the meantime, Intel has not hesitated to advocate the use of Linux in mobile devices. It unveiled the Moblin Project, comprising a Linux kernel, UI framework, browser, multimedia framework, and other relevant tools, in July 2007. Today, Adobe announced that a Moblin-compatible version of AIR, its web 2.0 multimedia technology, will be available for MIDs later this year. RealNetworks made a similar announcement regarding its "RealPlayer for MID" digital media player.
"Moore" on Moorestown
At the IDF event, Intel announced that its next generation "Moorestown" UMPC platform is targeted to launch in 2009/10. Moorestown can be considered the heir to the Centrino Atom designs, and consists of a system-on-chip (SoC) and an I/O hub. Codenamed "Lincroft," the SoC will integrate a 45nm core, graphics, video, and memory controller on a single chip, says Intel, greatly decreasing size and power consumption. The I/O hub, codenamed "Langwell," is said to support a range of I/O blocks such as storage and display, and to provide interfaces to third-party PMICs and wireless products.
Other pre-announcements and sneak peeks from Intel included upcoming anti-theft technology for laptops, details on the Intel Centrino 2 processor, and a look at the "Calpella" notebook design. Calpella will include a processor based on Intel's energy-efficient "Nehalem" technology, which is said to offer four times the memory bandwidth of the fastest Intel Xeon processor systems. Additional presentations covered the upcoming six-core, 45nm Dunnington processor, the four-core Tukwila Itanium processor, Intel's massively parallel Larrabee architecture for visual computing, and the Intel AVX (Advanced Vector Extensions) specification.
Stated Intel EVP Sean Maloney, of Atom, "[Atom] is our smallest processor built with the world's smallest transistors. We believe it will unleash new innovation across the industry."
Intel says it plans to publish software drivers for Atom and the SCH in July.
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