AMD Launches New Six-core Opteron CPUs

AMD is holding its own in the server CPU market against Intel even though Intel is dominating the desktop and laptop markets. Today AMD has announced five new chips for the server market with six-cores.

The new offerings include a pair of low power HE models built on the 45nm process. The CPUs are intended to be used in servers with four, six, or eight processors. AMD’s new 2423 HE six-core Opteron runs at 2GHz, the six-core Opteron 2425 HE runs at 2.1 GHz, and there is also a six-core Opteron 8425 HE that also runs at 2.1GHz reports ComputerWorld. The HE processors range in price from $455 to $1,514 each in 1,000 unit quantities.

The low power six-core chips consume 55 watts of power compared to the typical Opteron, which needs 75 watts or 105 watts to operate. The 45nm process allows for lower power consumption so enterprise users can pack more servers into a data center without greatly increasing the power consumption and reducing the space needed.

AMD also added a pair of new non-HE six-core processors to its line with the Opteron SE 8439 at 2.8GHz and the SE 2439 at 2.8GHz. The higher performance six-core non-HE parts both draw 105 watts of power and retail for $2,649 and $1,019 respectively. HP is now offering ProLiant servers that use the new AMD processors. Other computer makers are expected to start shipping servers using the new Opterons soon. HP claims that servers using the new Opteron processors offer 45% greater performance than previous server models.

AMD’s Patrick Patla said, “These new lower-power Six-Core AMD Opteron processors feature the highest performance per watt that we have brought to market, and help drive down power consumption while addressing the shifting cloud and Web landscape of today’s data center. And with six cores of compute power and Direct Connect Architecture, these processors deliver no-compromise performance.”

AMD launched new desktop processors in June with dual-cores.