I’ll say it again, for real PC gaming enthusiasts Larrabee will not be a bona fide option. Not in 2009 and maybe not ever.
Larrabee is going to be a highly programmable general purpose GPU (GP-GPU) that will eventually become a co-processor for other tasks. It is an answer to the threat from AMD and Nvidia – near-term their highly parallel programmable GPUs pose a real threat to Intel’s core business (pun intended).
Already we see products like the Gateway FX notebook line that couples a high end Nvidia GPU with a budget CPU. It easily outperfroms other notebooks with weaker GPUs and high-end Intel CPUs. This eliminates the need to spec a fast CPU, a builder can opt to spend slightly more on a good GPU for their product. For many years Intel has been the king of the bill of goods – getting the CPU, chipset and wireless budget directly and royalties indirectly from the vendors of other chips in a notebook. Any threat to this business is a big deal in Intel’s Santa Clara HQ.
Nvidia and AMD’s GP-GPU plans include hardware acceleration of ever more computation-intensive tasks. They will be pushing their gear into higher value segments such as science and research, but consumers will see some benefits too – Nvidia’s free physics acceleration driver last week is a good example.
AMD is working to directly integrate programmable GPUs on the CPU die.
There will be some well-deserved back patting next week at IDF, but Nvidia and AMD have less to celebrate. They are already in their dark little hovels plotting and scheming on how to spoil things for Intel.
