Haswell chips are built using a 22nm die, just like their Sandy Bridge predecessors. They’ll primarily drop into mainboards with an LGA1150 socket, though the top-end Core i7 beasts will require LGA2011. Quad-core options will start off with the Haswell Core i5. Moving up to an i7 will get you Hyper-Threading support — which means four cores and a total of eight threads. At the top of the range, Intel will offer a six-core hyper-threaded beast with 10 to15MB of L3 cache memory. The lower-end chips will ship with 6 to 8MB.
All the new Haswell chips will feature built-in Intel HD 4600 GPUs. They can output full 1080P 3D visuals, push content wirelessly to your displays using Intel’s WiDi tech, and seamlessly switch back and forth between graphics modes. Just like it does on Sandy Bridge, LucidLogic’s slick Virtu GPU virtualization software will help Haswell chips deliver efficient rendering whenever possible and slam on the accelerator when you’re performing more graphically intensive tasks. Back at CES, Intel’s demo showed that the HD4600 has enough oomph to keep up with an Nvidia GTX650.
Yes, we’re finally getting to the point where integrated graphics provide PC users with pretty decent gaming performance. It couldn’t have happened at a better time, either. The Windows Store has put addictive casual titles like Angry Birds and Where’s My Water? — as well as more intense Xbox games like The Harvest and Reckless Racing — within easy reach. Haswell will ensure that the masses have the power they need to enjoy silky-smooth desktop gaming, even if they don’t want to spend extra cash on a graphics card.
Now read: Intel says Haswell will provide a 50 percent boost in battery life
View the original article here
0 comments:
Post a Comment