would intel sell more cpus if they stopped changing sockets?

[Blue160]

Intel may well sell a few less processors due to the new socket, but they'll sell a huge amount of new chipsets for the P67 boards required.

They will have done the numbers on which way will make the most money. They seem to have decided complete incompatibility between generations of processor pays better. The amount of people put off upgrading must be more than compensated for by the amount who upgrade anyway and fork out for a new mobo and processor at the same time.

 

[mmj_uk]

If Intel had stuck to the same socket then they probably wouldn't have been able to innovate as much, although saying that I doubt the LGA1156 to LGA1155 transition was really necessary.

 

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The P67 chipset does work with socket 1156 processors though.

Perhaps I should pick up a Mac and an XBox360 and then I won't need to bother!











Only joking!

 

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Nobody knows for certain yet regarding to Llano, but AMD haven't moved to quell the talk that Llano will require a separate socket.

If Intel's current strategy is strange (At least Z68 will enable GPU+CPU overclocking on LGA1155) then AMD seems to be really, really confused in regards to their future.

We know the Bulldozer will not work with AM3 now, but at least AM3 processors will work in AM3+ boards, soemthing that will be a godsend for people who want to upgrade to Bulldozer eventually, but want to keep their CPUs for a little while longer, but the new Fusion APU's seem to require a commitment to a totally different platform.

It really does appear like both Intel and AMD are segregating their own upgrade paths & market, and I really don't have a clue why. While as stated above, it doesn't really matter to most people, for those who may want to change between Bulldozer/Fusion or between Intel chip generations, it could be far more costly that it really should be.

I wonder if socket AM3+ can support an IGP then??

Socket 1156 certainly did!

It is going to be an interesting year for CPUs!!

 

[Stop It Rawr]

If Intel had stuck to the same socket then they probably wouldn't have been able to innovate as much, although saying that I doubt the LGA1156 to LGA1155 transition was really necessary.

The P67 chipset does work with socket 1156 processors though.

While I can almost understand the change between LGA1366 to LGA1156 because of Triple/Dual channel architecture changes etc, I do believe that the change to LGA1155 was a bit cynical, especially as P67 works with LGA1156.

With Intel though, just as worrying is the chipsets being used as differentiators for different features of their chips. The fact that QuickSync is not available on P67 is a bit of an annoyance, and that Intel are going to introduce another chipset (Z67) that combines the features of H67 and P67 even though most of those features are on CPU raises a few questions.

I wonder if socket AM3+ can support an IGP then??

Socket 1156 certainly did!

It is going to be an interesting year for CPUs!!

An IGP by the usual use of the term (I.E on chipset rather than on CPU die?) most certainly, whether we'll see Fusion APU on Socket AM3+ is really an unknown at this point. That said, how long has Bulldozer been in development and we STILL do not know much about the platform? If anything AMD has probably brought Fusion forward as it has pushed Bulldozer back, creating the situation whether they have 2 different architectures clashing. As you said, we're in for a really interesting year for both Intel and AMD!

 

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Lucid are supposed to be working on a way to get around the limitation with Quick Sync:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4113/lucid-enables-quick-sync-with-discrete-graphics-on-sandy-bridge

 

[spleenharvester]

Applies for AMD too imo, bought an AM2+ board, two years down the line it's an obsolete socket and none of the actually "+" processors support it.

 

[Final8y]

all skt 775 cpu's can be used on ddr2 and ddr3 motherboards, and the only reason amd cpu's can be used on so many boards is that they are all basically the same architecture, there are only minor differences really between the first athlon x2's and the athlon II and phenom chips, they are all based on the K8 architecture only now with ddr3 controllers and l3 cache added.

Yes they can use DDR2 & DDR3 but it still must be a 775 socket.

 

[Final8y]

Applies for AMD too imo, bought an AM2+ board, two years down the line it's an obsolete socket and none of the actually "+" processors support it.

All of the + processors work AM2+ motherboards with the exception of where the manufacture did not add BIOS support for the new CPUs.

 

[Stop It Rawr]

Lucid are supposed to be working on a way to get around the limitation with Quick Sync:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4113/lucid-enables-quick-sync-with-discrete-graphics-on-sandy-bridge

I got really excited there until I realised that the stories were edited to include the fact that this is H67 only, and only for people using discrete graphics on that chipset, not for P67 users.

http://techreport.com/discussions.x/20217

This is all very good news for prospective Sandy Bridge owners, no doubt. The news would be better if this software could tap into the Sandy Bridge IGP on a P67 board, but Lucid tells us that's not possible. (An earlier version of this story suggested P67 support was possible. Apologies for the error.)

Hopes raised and dashed within 5 minutes! Damn you Intel!

 

[chipps101]

Yes they can use DDR2 & DDR3 but it still must be a 775 socket.

but core 2 and the i chips are completely different architectures, as i stated the only reason amd cpu's can be used on so many board revisions is because they are all basically the same architecture.

 

[Final8y]

but core 2 and the i chips are completely different architectures, as i stated the only reason amd cpu's can be used on so many board revisions is because they are all basically the same architecture.

The point is not the reasons neither do care i for them.

A new chip is a new chip & as long as it's an upgrade then that's all that matters.

 

[chipps101]

The point is not the reasons neither do care i for them.

A new chip is a new chip & as long as it's an upgrade then that's all that matters.

well am2+ cpu's cant use ddr3 or be installed in am3 motherboards so that negates your original point anyway.

 

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I suspect I will be using an Intel CPU for my next build as there is less choice in the SFF market for AMD motherboards!

Hopefully,AM3+ will rectify this.

 

[Final8y]

well am2+ cpu's cant use ddr3 or be installed in am3 motherboards so that negates your original point anyway.

I didn't claim every CPU was interchangeable, the point in that interchangeability does exist between the sockets & CPUs to a degree.
So my point still stands & you can put that absolute black & white pedantic card away in your back pocket.

 

[chipps101]

I didn't claim every CPU was interchangeable, the point in that interchangeability does exist between the sockets & CPUs to a degree.
So my point still stands & you can put that absolute black & white pedantic card away in your back pocket.

only really with am2+ boards, then you can use am2/am2+/am3 chips, am2+ is the only board that takes more than one type of chip until am3+ comes out.

and that is only backwards compatible so if you want a bulldozer chip your going to have to upgrade your am3 motherboard

 

[Final8y]

only really with am2+ boards, then you can use am2/am2+/am3 chips, am2+ is the only board that takes more than one type of chip until am3+ comes out.

and that is only backwards compatible so if you want a bulldozer chip your going to have to upgrade your am3 motherboard

And i didn't claim that there would not be a time when a new motherboard would be needed for a new CPU.

And you still don't get it that the point is still about existence of CPU socket interchangeability & not about what specific combination is not interchangeable because as i said that is being pedantic because nothing is absolute.

 

[pingu666]

there used to be 2-3 cpu revisions per motherboard generation from what i remmber, but intel have transitioned to 1 pretty much :/

 

[Final8y]

there used to be 2-3 cpu revisions per motherboard generation from what i remember, just hope that ther , but intel have transitioned to 1 pretty much :/

Well seeing as there is on die gpu with this lot & they may have had no choice this time around, just hope that the next 2 reversions don't need a new socket CPUs that are not backwards socket compatible.

 

[Uriel]

I'd be a lot more likely to go intel if I thought I could buy a cheap CPU now and get a significant upgrade later.

Having said that, buying right now, Intel looks like the way to go. AM3 looks like a dead end. Trouble is, every Intel socket looks like it's going nowhere too. Actually - it looks like the sensible long term platform option might be wait or AM3+.

My old ASROCK 939Dual-SATA2 got me from early 2006 on a single core 939 CPU to 2010 on a dual AM2 CPU. That's the kind of life I want in a motherboard. Unfortunately I bought my current board when the rumours suggested that Bulldozer would turn up on AM3.

Serial upgraders are a tiny proportion of the PC market though so as far as Intel are concerned I don't see them accommodating us. They do also make chipsets for motherboards, after all.