The Core 2 Quad processor is characterized as the company’s best offering for users who aren’t operating data centers or research grids, while the other two products — different versions of the Quad-Core Xeon 3200 — are geared toward low-end single-socket servers.
Intel CEO Paul Otellini said the new products give desktop users the same performance once found only in supercomputers.
Otellini said the Core 2 Quad processors, which should ease information gluts encountered when users deal with high-definition video and other multimedia offerings, would likely capture high-performance PC consumers who use chip-intensive applications such as Adobe After Effects, Premiere Pro 2.0, Windows Media Encoder, Snapstream Win DVD.
To speed the transition to quad-core chips, Intel has said it will work closely with software manufacturers to develop multi-threaded applications. At present, a lack of multi-thread applications on the market means that few users are able to take full advantage of the new processors.
While Intel is high on its new offerings, rival chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices said the new products are simply two dual-core chips glued together.
AMD said its Barcelona four-core processor would be a better option for consumers, when it is released later in the year.