In a move that could upstage the dual-core processor plans of Advanced Micro Devices and Intel, Via Technologies is developing a twin-core x86 processor that is likely to hit the market by June 2005.

The twin-core processor is primarily designed to be used in high-density server clusters. Via has demonstrated that two processors can fit onto a small Mini-ITX motherboard and it will be feasible for customers to offer a standard 1U server chassis containing two Mini-ITX motherboards running four twin-core processors, Brown said. Via’s twin-core processor contains two pieces of silicon–each with one Esther processor core on it–inside a single chip package, Brown said. By comparison, dual-core processors, which are being developed by AMD and Intel, put two cores on a single piece of silicon. Via also has plans to offer a dual-core chip, but that product is not expected to be available any time soon. Announced in May, the Esther cores are manufactured by IBM using a 90-nanometer process. The 32-bit chips consume 3.5 watts when running at a clock speed of 1 GHz and will run at a clock speed of up to 2 GHz. Esther also incorporates Via’s PadLock security technology that offers hardware-accelerated RSA encryption and support execution protection antivirus technology. Via has not finalized the clock speed of the cores that will be used in the twin-core chips, Brown said.

Source: PC World