Timing is everything
AMD announced the availability of a new enterprise-class embedded platform that utilises two new server chipsets: the SR5690 and the SP5100. These low-power chipsets work with seven Opteron CPUs in three power bands to offer increased performance per watt for vendors designing embedded systems for things like storage servers and routers.
"The gap in performance and power efficiency requirements is closing between typical datacenter servers and edge-of-network systems," said Patrick Patla, VP and GM of the server and embedded business at AMD. "Now, our commitment to the embedded market is stronger than ever as we bring new levels of performance combined with AMD's new server chipset to our embedded customers in enterprise markets."
As we wrote earlier, AMD is increasing its emphasis on platforms, as opposed to individual components, as it tries to demonstrate the unique benefits of being the only chip maker to design the CPU, GPU and chipset. This announcement is intended as further proof of that as well as coinciding with the start of IDF.
AMD isn't the only semiconductor company to time an announcement to coincide with Intel's California tech fest. In our earlier piece we revealed that Intel will be making a lot of noise about its move to a 32 nm manufacturing process.
Right now AMD is thought to be still 18 months away from moving to a 32 nm process, which is a pretty significant lag. So we wouldn't be surprised if AMD tried to slip out a bit of its own 32 nm news, if only to try to rain on Intel's parade.
