At the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) this week, Intel gave the first public demonstration of the graphics processor currently known by the code name Larrabee. Highly anticipated, specifically by the gaming community, Larrabee will be the company's first high-end graphics chip, enabling Intel to compete with the likes of Nvidia and AMD's ATI division for the first time. The GPU, which won't be available until the middle of next year, was demonstrated with a 32-nanometer, six-core CPU that also is expected to be released next year.
In the short term, Larrabee will initially be used for discrete graphics boards. This is where it will first go head-to-head with its two main competitors. It's also where system builders will have their first chance to expand their product lines. While gamers will likely flock to systems built with the new cards, anyone who has the need for high-speed graphics will be a potential customer.
Also planned for next year, Intel expects to incorporate Larrabee into an integrated product. This is an area where the company has excelled in the past, but has recently been lagging without any substantial new processing power to offer.
Larrabee could be the refresh that gives it the needed jump start. This news should be especially exciting for system builders, who will now be able to create more robust, relatively inexpensive machines using motherboards with integrated graphics. Until now, they had to look elsewhere for such an offering.
Additionally, Intel is hoping to get some momentum from the developer community. Because the processor is built with the same architecture as Intel's other products, the programming model is expected to be very similar to what developers are already familiar with.
Eventually, Intel plans to incorporate the Larrabee architecture into a 22nm CPU, but the company expects a larger market to come when it becomes part of system-on-a-chip products to be used in mobile and handheld devices.
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