Intel's struggle for nuclear technology.

What will future PCs faster: processors with many cores or graphics with even more cores? Intel wants this question answered by a court can order new Nvidia chips to ban - and thus possibly bring Apple into trouble.

 

Four years ago, were the two companies have agreed. Together, they signed an agreement that allowed Nvidia, so-called chipsets, the foundation of all PCs, for Intel-built processors. With the introduction of a new generation of processors, this arrangement has become obsolete, however, now alleges Intel. Nvidia, however, insists on his right and assumed debt, Intel trying to a fundamental shift in PC technology to prevent.

Jen-Hsun Huang, president and CEO of Nvidia, is sure, Intel's real motivation to know. "In essence, when this matter is that the CPU time has expired and the soul of your PC quickly moved to the GPU. This is clearly an attempt to stifle innovation, a decline CPU business to protect," says Huang.

And in fact, Intel with sharply declining revenues to fight. For the fourth quarter of 2008 reported the group had a
Profit slump of 90 percent. That was also the Netbook boom not change. Because Netbook almost always put Intel chips, however, such series of nuclear - and is particularly effective, obviously raises very little profit.

More seeds ...

That there will be controversy, however, was long in sight. Finally, the chip manufacturer Intel and Nvidia totally different views about how the computers of the future should be faster.

Intel is clearly the way out. Since the company from the Megahertz race has adopted is to integrate as many processor cores on a chip companies aim to become. The argument: In modern PCs running multiple programs is always parallel to each other. Spread it on the available cores, each of which runs faster, because undisturbed.

On computers with the latest processors with the type Core 2 Duo or Core 2 Quad, you can easily understand. Even if a virus scanner running in the background or you can burn a CD, it is in the foreground more easily surf the Web, chat or write a letter. Specially customized software, the multiple cores simultaneously, is still scarce. Programs targeted to understand the use of multiple processor cores, which will benefit all the more, shall be unchanged finished faster clock frequency than at a fast chip with one core. Up to 80 cores, Intel is already on test chips integrated. The evolution of multi-core chips, if Intel's plans to ensure that PCs will always be faster - provided that more and more customized software on the market.

... or more cores?

Nvidia, however, does not include the CPU, the main processor, but the GPU, the graphics processor, as a way into a future of faster computers. This too is understandable. Finally, although highly advanced graphics, and in some areas but much more fixed than CPUs. And because not every PC user also a hardcore gamer is, who buys an expensive graphics card, Nvidia has developed a way to its graphics cards also appeal to those users who are not even playing with friends like.

As an additional processor to the graphics some functions faster.
Up to 240 processor cores graphic stuffs Nvidia currently on a chip. Current high-end graphics cards have two such GPUs. Already there are some Photoshop filters graphics and video programs, which the performance of the graphics, to the specific tasks to be processed faster.

WHAT IS A chipset?

The chipset is the link between the processor and other hardware of the computer. It provides the connectivity to the outside world since the data sets on the motherboard and contains in some cases even a graphics card. While so far most chipsets consist of two separate units, as the Northbridge and Southbridge described, there are the functions of modern chipsets in part on a single physical chip housed, which lowers costs and space requirements.

At the computer fair Cebit, the next week in Hanover, is held around the Karlsruhe software Frma Nero released a new version of their show Videokonvertiersoftware Move It, which will use graphics to videos quickly than it would be possible via CPU to convert file formats, which are for MP3 players and multimedia phones are suitable. The company Cyberlink is an update of the video editing software PowerDirector perform, the film effects with the assistance of an Nvidia graphics card very quickly can be calculated.

Exactly in such applications is the future of his Nvidia graphics cards. Instead, only in games they should also in their performance multimedia applications off. The CPU would be in such a system, the boss of the big picture looks after the graphics card would give him all the computationally intensive routine tasks decrease.

Apple between the fronts

Exactly such a system probably also have Apple's engineers had in mind when she's products for 2009 were being planned. In October last year the company introduced the first laptop manufacturer out, in which although
an Intel processor, the main work is done, but by an Nvidia chipset with Nvidia graphics card can be controlled.

The step was logical. Short term, simply because NVIDIA's graphics are faster than those of Intel. Long term, because Apple has announced that its next major operating system upgrade Mac OS X 10.6 "Snow Leopard" GPUs right to want to support. Thus, not only a few specialized, but many programs the performance of the graphics card can use.

Also, because this announcement is available in industry circles as ensure that Apple's product range 2009 only on the new Intel processors, but Nvidia chipsets redenominate wants. Should Intel's processors now but by court decision on Intel chipsets bind, would the Mac makers faced with a dilemma.

"
Apple insiders fear that Apple could take his future professional then Macs with Nvidia graphics cards equipped, so that the acceleration features in Mac OS X 10.6 could benefit the iMacs and MacBook would remain this way but refused. There should Apple use Intel's integrated graphics -- not as accelerator can be used. The result would be huge performance gap between the Mac and the other upper-Apple computers.

This is "Apple Insider" on the right track, but a little beside the track. As a third alternative that could Apple Intel chipsets used in Nvidia graphics on the motherboard soldering. Elegant but would not this way.

Whether it really so far, now depends on a court in the U.S. state of Delaware from. There, the market leader Intel lawsuit against Nvidia eingerecht. It should prohibit Nvidia, to develop chipsets for the new Core i7 processors are compatible. Intel's argument: The new processors are compared to their predecessors, so fundamentally changed that the old arrangements on it is no longer applicable.

The main difference with previous Intel processors: As before, an extra chip needed in order to manage memory, whose functions are now transferred from the processor, therefore the faster the memory access. A test machine with a burst of new chips
In a first test all speed records.

For a year, so the two parties, had already been discussions on the contentious question, but it has not reached agreement. According to Intel spokesman Chuck Malloy, the company has no other way now seen more than a court to find a solution. Nvidia President Huang looks calm at the trial. He is "convinced that the negotiated license is valid."

The judges in Delaware have the task not only of a license agreement to decide, but also on whether in the PCs and Macs in the near future graphics cards or the main processor will determine how fast the computer at the end of the touch. Light is not.