A couple of weeks ago, we evaluated Intel's Pinetrail platform for netbooks, which features an Atom CPU core, fused to a graphics processor on a single, monolithic die. Today, Intel is taking a similar approach in the desktop space with the company's much more powerful Clarkdale family of processors, although Clarkdale's integrated graphics processor isn't on-die--it is on the same package as the CPU though.

Clarkdale-based processors feature a number of cutting edge Intel technologies. For one, the processor cores are manufactured using a 32nm high-k process. They also feature Intel Turbo Mode technology, Hyper-Threading, AES acceleration, and Intel's latest graphics processing core, branded Intel HD Graphics, that also happens to house a memory controller and PCI Express connectivity. The Clarkdale architecture will be used for a whole family of new processors in the Core i5, Core i3, and Pentium series. We've had one of the higher-end offerings in house for a few weeks, the Core i5 661, and have been putting it through its paces for most of that time. Read on for the full scoop...



Link: HotHardware