Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 'Kentsfield' Test

Core 2 Quad

Back to the original topic: the quad core processor released today which will take the place of the Core 2 Extreme X6800 as Intel's flag ship processor. The QX6700 will be primarily aimed at enthusiasts and high end gamers. The Q in the model number stands for Quad, indicating the four cores used in the processor, the X is the Extreme notification and 6700 refers to the clock frequency the cores run at. Just like the E6700 the QX6700 will run at a clockspeed of 2.67GHz, 266MHz slower than the current topmodel that runs at 2.93GHz.

The Core 2 Extreme QX6700 has 8MB of L2 cache, as it consists of two Core 2 Duo chips with 4MB of L2 cache each. using the two chips also means that the power consumption of the QX6700 is twice that of a normal Conroe, where the E6700 has a TDP of 65Watts, the QX6700 is classed with a TDP of no less than 130Watts. As a comparison the current top model X6800 has a TDP of 95 Watts.

The official announcement of the quad-core processor is today, however the processor will not be available in store untill the 14th of November. The release prices will be similar to those of the other Extreme models, meaning that you will have to pay around 1000 dollars to get your hands on one of these.

The quad core processors will carry the name Core 2 Quad.

In the first quarter of 2007 other quad core processor will start to surface, named Core 2 Quad. Model numbers and clock frequencies have not yet been officialy announced, however Intel did promise that the maximum TDP of the processors will be no more than 100 Watts

One of the upsides of the Core 2 Quad is that if you already own a Core 2 Duo you will not have to change your motherboard to be abel to use one of these. The processor will be able to run on any motherboard that is capable of using Core 2 Duo processors, so all the 975X and 965 motherboards on the market today will be suitable for the processors.