Intel Debut Six-Core Gulftown i7-980X Extreme Edition

Intel was introduced at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco to debut six-core processor for high-end gaming–its also Intel’s first processor with six physical cores, offering increased system performance in applications optimized to take advantage of them.

The Gulftown i7-980X brings Intel’s turbo boost and hyperthreading technologies to the 32nm process technology. In general, smaller manufacturing processes to improve performance. Most Intel processor continues to use the “fatter” 45-nanometer technology.

• Core Frequency: 3.33GHz (Up To 3.6GHz w/ Turbo)
• QPI Speed – 6.4GT/s
• TDP (Thermal Design Power) – 130W
• Stepping – 2
• Number of CPU Cores – 6 (12 Threads w/ HT)
• Intel SmarCache – 12MB
• L2 Cache – 1.5MB (256K x 6)
• Processor input voltage (VID) – .95v
• .032-micron manufacturing process
• Shared Smart Cache Technology
• PECI Enabled
• Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology (EIST)
• Extended HALT State (C1E) Enabled
• Execute Disable Bit (XD) Enabled
• Intel 64 Technology
• AES-NI: 12 new processor instructions
• Intel Virtualization Technology (VT)
• Packaging – Flip Chip LGA1366
• Total Die Size: Approximately 248mm2
• Approximately 1.17B Transistors

Source: [HotHardware.com], [News.Cnet.com]