Core will be launched during the third quarter of 2006 and will be Intel’s first new micro architecture in several years, a launch that is suppose to put a lot more pressure on AMD than what NetBurst managed to do. Those who think that Intel will lean back and let Core do its work after the launch should reconsider, if we are to believe analysts at In-Stat. Jim McGregor at In-Stat namely believes that Intel will continue it’s ecalation and mentions a focus on quad-core and yet another micro architecture in 2007/2008. What this new architecture would be is a bit unclear as McGregor doesn’t really say anything about it and to be honest it sounds a bit too early for a new architecture, especially considering the potential Core has shown.
At the same time it could be an evolution of Core that will fight AMD’s next processor architecture that is suppose to arrive the next year. Intel’s view on quad-core processors is also a bit different from the view on dual-core. Dual-core was quickly introduced to all market, more or less, while Quad-core is expected to get a much slower start, not the least considering the increasing workload four physical cores would create for the software designers.
