Penryn Core New Features

Penryn Core

Besides the new manufacturing process we have already explained on our Details on Intel’s Forthcoming 45 nm Manufacturing Technology article, Penryn core updates Core microarchitecture, bringing some new features:

• Larger L2 memory cache (up to 6 MB for dual-core CPUs and up to 12 MB for quad-core CPUs).
• Split load caches.
• Faster buses (up to 1,600 MHz).
• New SSE4 instruction set (which brings 47 new SSE instructions to the CPU).
• Deep Power Down Technology (only on mobile CPUs).
• Enhanced Intel Dynamic Acceleration Technology (only on mobile CPUs).
• Fast Radix-16 Divider (FPU enhancement).
• Super Shuffle engine (FPU enhancement).
• Enhanced Virtualization Technology (between 25% and 75% performance improvement on virtual machine transition time).

Figure 2: New microarchitecture enhancements brought with Penryn core.

On Figures 3 and 4 you can see a summary of the CPUs that will be launched for the mobile, desktop and server markets based on the new Penryn core.

Figure 3: Mobile and desktop CPUs based on Penryn core.

Figure 4: Server CPUs based on Penryn core.

Let’s now talk about some of the new features brought by the new Penryn core.