Nick Race03 November 2008, 3:00 PM
This smoking new CPU from Intel does away with Frontside Bus altogether and brings a technology back from the dead.
Page 2 - New to the core
Bloomfield has a number of fundamental changes from the Penryn processors we’re used to. Physically, Bloomfield is a larger processor in a new socket, incompatible with existing coolers and motherboards.
Though we’ve been steady with socket LGA775 since 2004, moving to the new on-chip memory controller means a larger number of physical connections are needed for the interface; and a new socket is born – socket LGA1366. It’s physically larger than socket LGA775, and is incompatible with existing CPU coolers, so no easy upgrade there.
The rear of the Bloomsfield Core i7 processor showing new socket interface
More importantly, Bloomfield does away with the front side bus (FSB) altogether, as well as integrating the memory controller directly into the processor itself. Replacing the FSB is a new interconnect named QuickPath Interconnect (QPI).
The processor’s cache has also had a revision, with some major changes over Penryn.