Computex is a pain in some ways. We get to see tons of new hardware and really interesting electronics, but then we have the huge amount of FUD and all of the indecisive rumors contradicting each other. One of the most stubborn rumors is the one about Intel, NVIDIA and Intel’s support for SLI. This is a debate that has been going on for years now. NVIDIA has been very strict with its SLI technology and only allowed Intel to use for its workstation platforms and the Quadro cards, no GeForce SLI for the retail boards. This is not something that has changed just because Computex has started, but we feel we should clear out some of the mess.
Until we hear final word from Intel and NVIDIA, the deal is that Intel can have Quadro SLI support for its workstation boards. There will be no GeForce SLI for any of the chipset from Intel. The coming X38 chipset is not exclusively a retail chipset, but will also be used for workstation boards, which means that it will have Quadro SLI support on some motherboards, but still no GeForce SLI.
Third-party developers like Foxconn have been rumored stating that there might be drivers unlocking the support for GeForce SLI with Intel X38, but this is not something you can trust as of today. Intel does not have SLI support and X38 is a chipset for people who want to run CrossFire and or perhaps two GeForce cards separately (in terms of graphics capabilities), SLI just isn’t there.
And oh, X38 will arrive in August if you’re wondering.
