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PCI Express 3.0: On Motherboards By This Time Next Year?

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After an unfortunate series of untimely delays, the folks behind PCI Express 3.0 believe they've worked out the kinks that have kept next-generation connectivity from achieving backwards compatibility with PCIe 2.0. We take a look at the tech to come.

Moore's Law states that the amount of transistors which can be placed on a chip will double every two years. This has often been misinterpreted as a statement that processor speed will double every two years. It’s a misinterpretation that the computer-buying general public has turned into an expectation of exponentially-scaling PC performance.

However, as you’ve undoubtedly noticed, shipping processors have been stuck between 3 GHz and 4 GHz for about six years now. So, the computer industry has had to find other ways to make data move faster. One of the most important of those ways has been maintaining balance between platform components using PCI Express, the open standard technology that enables high-speed graphics cards, expansion cards, and other onboard computer components. It’s at least arguable that PCI Express is as important to scalable performance as multi-core processors. Although dual-core, quad-core, and hexa-core CPUs can only be adequately used by applications optimized for threading, every program installed on your machine can and will touch components attached via PCI Express in some way.  

Many industry observers originally expected motherboards and chipsets based on next-generation PCI Express 3.0 to appear in the first quarter of 2010. Unfortunately, problems with backward compatibility delayed the launch of PCI Express 3.0, and as we enter the second half of this year, we’ve been left waiting for official word on the new standard's release.

Finally, following a conference call with PCI-SIG (the Special Interest Group that oversees the PCI and PCI Express standards), we at last have some answers. 

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cmcghee358 08/03/2010 6:34 AM
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Good article with some nice teases. Seems us regular users of high end machines won't see a worth until 2012. Just in time for my next build!

tony singh 08/03/2010 6:43 AM
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What the..... pcie3 already devoloped & most games graphics are still of geforce 7 level thnk u consoles..

darthvidor 08/03/2010 7:03 AM
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just got pci-e 2.0 last 2008 with my x58 ... time's flying

iqvl 08/03/2010 7:13 AM
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Good news to peoples like me who haven't spent any money on PCIE 2.0 DX11 card due to nVidia's delay in shipping GTX460.

Can't wait to see PCIE 3.0, native USB3/SATA3, DDR4, quad channel and faster&cheaper SSD next year.

In addition, I hate unreasonably priced buggy HDMI and would also like to see the Ethernet cable(cheap, fast and exceptional) based monitors as soon as possible.
http://www.tomshardware.com/news/e [...] 10784.html

One more tech that I can't wait to see: http://www.tomshardware.com/news/s [...] 10961.html

WOW, so much new techs to be expected next year!

ytoledano 08/03/2010 7:21 AM
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Casper42 08/03/2010 7:33 AM
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JonnyDough 08/03/2010 7:43 AM
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Quote :After an unfortunate series of untimely delays, the folks behind PCI Express 3.0 believe they've worked out the kinks that have kept next-generation connectivity from achieving backwards compatibility with PCIe 2.0. We take a look at the tech to come.


It's nice to see the backwards compatibility and cost be key factors in the decision making. Especially considering that devices won't be able to saturate it for many years to come.

rohitbaran 08/03/2010 7:50 AM
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Quote :Nothing in the world of graphics is getting smaller. Displays are getting larger, high definition is replacing standard definition, the textures used in games are becoming even more detailed and intricate.

Even the graphics cards are getting bigger! :lol:

iqvl 08/03/2010 7:53 AM
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rohitbaran :
Even the graphics cards are getting bigger!


I believe that he meant gfx size per performance. :)

Tamz_msc 08/03/2010 7:57 AM
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Quote :We do not feel that the need exists today for the latest and greatest graphics cards to sport 16-lane PCI Express 3.0 interfaces.
Glad you said today, since when Crysis 3 comes along its all back to the drawing board, again.

rohitbaran 08/03/2010 7:58 AM
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iqvl :
I believe that he meant gfx size per performance.


Still, the largest cards today are a bit too large! Aren't they!

qhoa1385 08/03/2010 9:42 AM
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descendency 08/03/2010 10:02 AM
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rohitbaran :
Even the graphics cards are getting bigger!


And thanks to NVidia, hotter.

LordConrad 08/03/2010 10:49 AM
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"After an unfortunate series of untimely delays..."

A series of unfortunate events? That sounds familiar...

shortbus25 08/03/2010 10:49 AM
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NVidia=Global Warming?

anonymous 08/03/2010 10:53 AM
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Very pleased with all this, looks like 2012 Q1/2 will be my new PC build, should all come together nicely then!

ta152h 08/03/2010 11:02 AM
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This article could have been written in a sentence. PCI-E 3.0 will be out in 2011 and will be faster.

Perhaps you could have explained why CUDA would benefit from this, or what type of apps that use it could. Fusion makes no sense to me, since the GPU and CPU will not be connected using PCI-Express, and be on the same die. Maybe you could explain why these things are going to benefit.

Also, according to the visual, latency will be lowered. Bandwidth is essentially irrelevant in many situations, since it's only rarely fully used, but latency could make itself felt in virtually anything.

You also could have included the extra power use this extra speed will take. It almost certainly will, all other things being equal. That's a huge consideration. If I have to add, say 15 watts to my motherboard, is it worth it for a technology that might not be relevant for many situations, in the relative near term? If it's one or two watts, it's a no brainer, but, if it's a lot higher (which I suspect it might be), people need to really ask if they need this technology, or if it's better to wait until the next purchase, when it might have more value.

Mousemonkey 08/03/2010 11:19 AM
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cmartin011 08/03/2010 11:38 AM
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they should integrate Intel's new optic technology in to it give it twice the bandwidth on top of that 64 gb/s or more

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