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- Nomenclature: Intel Pentium 670 3.8GHz
- Family: Prescott
- Part Number: JM80547PG1122M
- Frequency 3.8 GHz
- Packaging LGA775
- FSB Frequency 800MHz "200MHz Quad Pumped" FSB
- Voltage 1.440V
- Transistors 169 million
- SIMD Instruction Support MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, EMT64
- Die Size: 135 square mm
- Typical Heat Dissipation: 115W
- L1 Cache: 16Kilobytes Data Cache 1200 micro ops L1 Trace Cache
- L2 Cache: 2MB On chip cache
- Dual Core: No
- Memory Controller: 128-bit Dual Channel
- Supported Memory: DDR and DDR2 depending on motherboard chipset
- HyperThreading support: Yes
- Intel Extended Memory 64 Technology support: Yes
- Execute Disable Bit Feature (NX) support Yes
Intel has traditionally included the clock speed of the CPU in their CPU name. Recently, Intel has changed this policy and moved in the direction of rival company AMD in a surprising yet not really shocking move. The 6 in the 670 name stands for the 64-bit code instructions. The 7 in the 670 is the highest number currently in use in the Intel family of CPUs and the 7 stands for 3.8GHz, as 6 stands for 3.6GHz. A 640 or 540 CPU runs at 3.4GHz. The value CPU uses 2 as the second digit. The 820, 520 and 620 CPUs all run at 2.8GHz. This is a total direction change for Intel and not surprising as the GHZ barrier is about at its maximum and AMD's better performance out of lower clock speed CPU methodology, may pan out better for them in the long run as Intel now changes gears and goes hard-core, dual-core. By this time next year many applications will probably be 64-Bit, and dual-core enabled, making these single-core CPUs obsolete in the wake of better software and further advancements in CPU architecture. The Intel Pentium 4 670 is Intel's fastest shipping CPU in terms of clock speed and the fastest clocked speed CPU currently available. With the cancellation last year of Intel's 4GHz and up processors, THE 3.8GHz 670 is likely to be the fastest clock speed CPU for the immediate foreseeable future. The 670 supports HT (HyperThreading) technology, a feature not supported by most of Intel's Dual Core CPUs except the highest end 3.2GHz 840.
The LGA-775 is the latest CPU Socket interface from our friends at Intel Corp. Intel introduced the LGA775 platform in the middle of last year and other than the less than perfect heatsink attachment; it offers better features and memory options than the previous 478 platform did, and at about the same cost point. The 3.8 does run at a significantly higher temperature threshold than AMD's FX-57 and the retail Intel heatsink combination is barely adequate. I personally feel it's actually the worst cooling connection interface I have yet seen designed, and the Achilles heel of the entire LGA775 platform. With the temperatures of their processors increasing with every new CPU release, they should have had a much better solution than what they have now. Intel chips are now running hot and in that light require better thermal protection than ever needed previously. Microsoft released the Windows XP 64-bit edition recently and it is starting to gain growth in the industry. Many applications and games are being written to take advantage of 64-bit. One advantage of 64-bit support is the increase of memory supported from 4GB on current Intel CPUs to 8GB when using Windows 64-bit. Intel supports EMT64 extensions on their 6xx and 8xx series of CPUs. The feature set of EMT64 is similar in most respects to AMD's x86-64 instruction set. Intel was a bit late to the whole 64-Bit bandwagon, but finally came on board once Microsoft had a somewhat viable release candidate available to the masses. Intel has now hit a wall in their single core CPU design as 3.8GHz seems to be as far as it gets before thermal problems become a serious issue. Intel needs to develop a new plan to increase the efficiency of their CPUs, one that circumvents the need for higher clock speeds and focuses on better ways to get more productivity from the CPU. How well the Intel 670 performs will be a key factor in its overall value. Priced at around $930.00 it is about a hundred dollars cheaper than the AMD FX-57.
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