Like Daniel Craig's Bond in Casino Royale, Intel's Core 2 processor reinvented the franchise when it arrived in 2006. Since then, it's all but taken over the desktop CPU market from the then-resurgent AMD. But like our fictional hero, Intel needs to keep churning out the hits, not rest on past glories. The Core i7 processor is just that kind of release, and it adds new features and ramps up performance, while maintaining that all-important x86 compatibility.

From Santa Clara with Love

The Core i7 is a hybrid design, almost as if someone took the very best from the Intel Core 2 and AMD Phenom X4 architectures and then improved on them even more. Rather than pasting two Core 2 Duo processors together to make a Core 2 Quad, the Core i7 is Intel's first true quad-core CPU, with four distinct cores on the same die, all sharing a massive 8MB of Level 3 cache. This is augmented by the return of Hyper-Threading technology, which lets the four physical cores work as eight logical ones, which increases multithreading performance and allows for smoother multitasking.

The biggest architectural shift is the addition of an onboard memory controller to the Core i7, thereby allowing the processor to link directly to system memory with no need for a Northbridge chipset in between. But unlike AMD processors' dual-channel DDR2 path, this integrated controller supports faster DDR3 memory in a faster triple-channel configuration. The front-side bus has been replaced by Intel's answer to AMD's HyperTransport: the QuickPath Interconnect (QPI), which supports up to 32GB/sec of bandwidth.

Intel has upgraded its CPU socket (again) to the LGA1366 format. This time, it's not just to tick users off or prove its lack of foresight, but to accommodate the processor's larger die size, higher transistor count, and integrated memory controller. This is a brand-new CPU, with a very different architecture and interface, and it requires a brand-new socket and platform. Regardless of intent, this has totally eliminated the Core i7 as an upgrade option for existing LGA775 platform owners, and has led to lower-than expected price levels.

LGA1366's motherboard socket dimensions are similar to LGA775's, but the cooling requirements have changed. LGA1366 offers a larger pinout for CPU heat sinks, allowing vendors to explore even larger cooler designs. Unfortunately, the old push-pin (a.k.a. broken-thumb) format has come back for a return engagement; Intel steadfastly refuses to incorporate a more user-friendly bracket or other cooler-attachment mechanisms.

In addition to LGA1366, Intel will also introduce a LGA1066 socket designed for mainstream users, which will support a dual-channel DDR3 memory controller and integrated PCI Express. This dual-socket business approach is an interesting one, mimicking the old AMD Socket 754/940 split, as it does clearly delineate the mainstream and high-end markets. But in addition to Intel manufacturing two separate processor lines, it also requires motherboard vendors to produce two different platforms and for OEM system builders to stock both, thereby losing much of any economy-of-scale benefits.

You Only Live Thrice

One of the most dazzling aspects of the Core i7 is the bandwidth afforded by a triple-channel DDR3 link. While AMD's on-chip memory controller was outpacing the Core 2, Intel was forced to lower CPU latencies and ramp up memory performance as much as possible using a conventional Northbridge.

Now that the Core i7 has its own integrated memory controller, all of its enhanced technologies, combined with the sheer bandwidth possible with tri-channel DDR3, have paid off with memory performance that is off the charts. The new Intel CPU's memory bandwidth leaves AMD's best in the dust, and even its memory latency scores are better than anything offered by the Phenom X4 or Core 2 lines.

This is definitely a strong point of the Core i7 architecture, but since DDR3 voltage is linked to the CPU itself, Intel has issued warnings to keep a standard 1.6-volt setting or risk damage to the processor. It also means that existing low-latency DDR3 memory (1.8V+) must be redesigned, not only for triple-channel configurations but for lower memory voltages.

The X58 is not Enough

If there is one chink in the Intel next-generation armor, it's the company's reliance on the X58 Express chipset and the current price of X58-based motherboards. The minute the Core i7 was officially released and enthusiasts caught wind of the 2.66GHz Core i7 920 selling for only $300, it set off a flurry of buying activity. Online forums were ablaze as users hunted down online retailers with stock, began to place orders, and started pricing LGA1366 motherboards.

The last was where things came to a screeching halt, as a quality Intel X58 motherboard will run you between $250 and $300 with enthusiast-level boards moving that up to $400. These X58 boards are priced higher than similar-brand Intel X38 or X48 motherboards, and at significantly more than a mainstream Intel P45 motherboard. One problem is the lack of competition, as the X58 is the only LGA1366-compatible platform today and could be so for some time.

NVIDIA has stated (willingly or not) that it will skip LGA1366, but may introduce chipsets for the mainstream LGA1066 platform. AMD/ATI is now out of the mix, and it's as if other chipset vendors have left the LGA1366 platform to Intel, which is an unprecedented and ominous move. On one hand, Intel needs third-party chipsets to provide diversity, but on the other, it must be raking in serious cash on all the X58 early adopters while waiting patiently to release lower-cost mainstream Core i7 chipsets.

Live AMD Let Die

If AMD's situation was tenuous before the Core i7 release, it looks extremely dire now. The company's current lineup of Phenom X3 and X4 multicores, while very competitive at the $100-$200 price range, has nothing to challenge the higher-end Core 2 models. Now that Intel has introduced the even more powerful i7, the CPU war has quickly turned into a beatdown with both the Core 2 and Core i7 piling on AMD.

But that could change in very short order. AMD has already released new 45-nanometer-process, quad-core Opteron server processors with an updated core architecture and much more competitive performance and TDP ratings. The desktop version of the 45-nanometer core will follow -- and the only question is whether AMD can make a late-2008 release or if we must wait till 2009.

The 45-nanometer Phenom II "Deneb" will run at faster clock speeds (2.8GHz to 3.0GHz and higher) and support either DDR2 or DDR3 memory, while taking advantages of architectural enhancements such as faster memory access and 6MB (up from 2MB) of Level 3 cache. Based on Opteron-versus-Xeon benchmarks, it looks as if AMD has finally closed the gap with the Core 2 Quad, but it remains to be seen how the Phenom II will compare to the Core i7. Hopefully, for AMD it won't be yet another case of too little, too late.