ATI RD600 looks like one of the most promising chipsets to arrive for Intel’s new Core platform and after that our own Marcus “Kinc” Hultin saw the circuit in action at ATI’s launch of the X1950 series there is no doubt that overclockers should keep their eyes open for a board. New information now states that RD600 will be launched next month. This means that the launch has been postponed somewhat and the reason seems to be that motherboard manufacturers have started to doubt the potential of the new circuit. The problems are related to both AMD’s acquisition of ATI and Intel’s licensing of its processor buses.
Motherboard manufacturers are afraid that AMD will cripple the support for RD600, as it is a chipset developed for its biggest competitor; Intel. And according to The Inquirer AMD has already reduced the force working with the chipset which has caused further delays with troubleshooting and such.
Intel also plays a part in this as it has only licensed its 1066MHz processor bus to ATI, and next year it will launch the first processor with 1333MHz FSB which could mean that ATI isn’t allowed to support these, even if the chipset can handle the speed. ATI says that it hasn’t bumped into any problems and that many motherboard manufacturers are optimistic about the new chipset.
Whatever may happen we will return to RD600 when the chipset is launched and you count on us doing some serious overclocking, which is where the circuit will be able to really show what it’s worth.
