AMD releases 45nm `Shanghai Chips'

14 November 2008

A year after larger rival Intel launched its first 45-nanometer processors, Advanced Micro Devices brought out its first 45nm quad-core (where each core operates as an independent computing device on the same chip) server chips, code-named Shanghai, for use in servers - the computers on which corporate networks run.

In fact, AMD waited until Shanghai was in distribution to make a formal announcement.

AMD was able to launch Shanghai ahead of schedule, unlike the ill-fated Barcelona series. The first nine Shanghai processors for servers in its Opteron stable, which have been priced very close to their Barcelona equivalents, would deliver 30 to 35 per cent better performance. The new processors also consume less power than the Barcelona chips, thus reducing customers' costs and boosting efficiency.

According to AMD, the highly energy-efficient Shanghai chip automatically turns off some parts of the chip when they are not in use; it also works well with virtualisation.

As opposed to Intel's method, AMD, together with IBM, used new immersion lithography to make the leap from 65nm to 45nm.

Intel's new chip, code-named Nehalem, is due to be released on 17 November. The chip, to be sold under the name Core i7, will resemble Shanghai, ie, it will have an `on-chip memory controller,' which helps speed performance, something that AMD's chips have had since 2003 (helping them to garner business for a short while), and Intel had generally avoided.