AMD "Puma" Can't Compete With Core 2 Duo

Zagreb (Croatia) – This morning we received delicate details about AMD’s answer to Intel’s Montevina design from our moles in Taiwan. The information we received could get you concerned about the new mobile processor Griffin as well as the Puma platform. Since our sources inside AMD confirmed the information, we have reason to believe that the Puma story might get ugly.

If you think about characteristics and features a mobile platform requires, the answer always boils down to power consumption. And according to our sources, power consumption is exactly AMD’s problem with Puma. It seems that AMD is in trouble and created a processor that actually consumes more power than its predecessor. If Griffin eats more juice than AMD’s Turn-me-on (Turion 64), take a guess what the main problem will be when AMD is trying to be getting those mobile design wins?

The 780M chipset for Puma is not really different than the already existing desktop-based 780G chipset (it will use the RS780M Northbridge and SB700 Southbridge chips). But AMD didn’t spare a dime to get the most recent TSMC production line for RS780M, which takes the chipset on a power diet, we hear.

The Griffin processor itself, however, is an in-between product of the K8 and K10 architectures: The processing cores belong to the old world, while the power optimization of memory controller/Northbridge and HyperTransport 3 are taken from the Barcelona/Agena generation of CPUs. Griffin also comes with three independent power planes (Barcelona/Agena has only two).

Performance-wise, we were told that Griffin won’t be able to match Intel’s Core 2 Duo speed, which will be an obvious problem. However, Puma could be running circles around Montevina as soon as you mention the term 3D. RS780M is expected to be a much stronger (DirectX 10) graphics engine than what the Santa Rosa platform offers. But we will have to wait for Intel’s new Montevina platform to get a better idea of how the rivalry will pan out.The good news for Puma is that the platform is on target to be available for the for Back-to-school season.

Regardless Intel’s 45 nm design has the edge and and consumes less power. However, the current situation apparently prompted AMD to adjust its marketing message, stating that it is focused on delivering “balanced” platforms. An AMD source told us that "Griffin will not be able to touch Core 2 Duo", which is quite a bombastic statement coming from a senior source.

It was explained to us that AMD does not care that much about CPU performance anymore, but rather about the platform performance. This goes in line with NVIDIA’s efforts, but the reason for this shifted message at AMD might lie somewhere else.

  • KyleSTL
    Wow, just wow. It's like Fox news "balanced". It's as if Porsche came out and said fuel efficiency doesn't matter, and neither does performance, because the outside of the car is sexy and it matches the comfortable interior. Ok, we'll give the victory to Ferrari, because we can't compete with them (or Audi in more recent history).
    Reply
  • piratepast40
    Kyle, I'm with you and just dumbfounded at this news. "Wow, just wow", pretty much captures it. It sure doesn't sound good but we really have to wait and see actual performance and power consumption at different load levels. Maybe "platform performance" will be more than just marketing fluff.
    Reply
  • Kostya
    Unless speed of work notebook is defined only by speed of the CPU? In HD-video, strongly will help the processor a chipset 780M. In games, to the processor also strongly will help 780M. I consider, that weak 3D just the strongest restriction in application notebook with what just will successfully consult 780M and that is not present now at Intel.
    If together with mobile processor Intel to use a discrete graphic card it will strongly affect for the period of autonomy notebook, i.e. that for what notebook has been created.

    P.S.
    Sorry for my English, i'm from Russia.
    Reply
  • CheloctonusJonessi
    Well we all know what the history of AMD is:
    perfect "gaming"
    and to offer a cheaper solution to the consumer.

    But now they are losing their focus and don't really focus on what they are doing. They are falling more and more behind with CPU power(don't let me mention the problems and they can't even keep up with the "Core 2 Duo"). I for one am still a AMD fan, mainly because they haven't failed me in the past. Now I ask them don't fail me now....
    Reply
  • piratepast40
    After looking at some earlier articles again, this particular story doesn't say squat. In fact, it sounds more like THG jumping on a doom and gloom scenario without looking at the platform and it's design. Here's an article that talks a little about the "Power Express Technology" and how it switches between external and integrated graphics: http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1406. If you take this into account, the above article doesn't say anything about when power consumption is high so it's really not saying anything. They're just repeating rumors without any facts or explanation.
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  • jonxor
    There is very little solid fact in this article. Alot of "so we hear" and "Our sources tell us it might". Basically all we know are model numbers, and a little about the processor architecture. Everything else has been stated to be speculation. I'll wait and see when the real numbers come out, I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. They're recovering from the mess of merging with ATI, and are starting to get their momentum built up again.
    Reply
  • amdfangirl
    Still everyone knows how good the 780G+Athlon X2 is...... so maybe its not that bad....
    Reply
  • ram1009
    Sorry for my English, i'm from Russia.

    Not to worry!! Your English is much better than my Russian.
    Reply
  • amdfangirl
    ^ There, there comrade enthusiast
    Reply
  • chechnyan
    ohh God is it impossible to hear something positive from AMD
    Reply