Intel and AMD Processor Time Line

Intel CPU Product Line

1978

8088

The 8086 is a 16-bit microprocessor chip designed by Intel in 1978, which

gave rise to the x86 architecture. The Intel 8088 (released shortly
afterwards) was essentially the same chip, but with an external 8-bit data
bus, allowing the use of cheaper and fewer supporting logic chips[1]. That
8088 processor is notable as the processor used in the original IBM PC.
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Buses:

• Address Bus - 20-bit address bus. Can access 220 memory locations i.e
1 MB of memory.
• Data Bus - 16 bit data bus. Can access 16 bit data in one operation.
Hence called 16-bit microprocessor.

1982

80286

80286

The second generation of the Intel x86 family of CPU chips. The term may
refer to the chip or to a PC that used it. Introduced in 1982, it was the
successor to the 8088/8086 chips used in the first PCs. The 286 broke the
infamous one-megabyte memory barrier, but although faster than the
previous generation, it was never capable of supporting Windows and other
graphics-based applications. See AT class and x86.

Technical Specs
Type: 16-bit multitasking microprocessor
Transistors: 134,000
Package: 68-pin PGA, PLCC or LCC
Registers: 15 16-bit
Real Mode: Performs as 8086 CPU; addresses 1MB memory.
Protected Mode: Addresses 16MB physical and 1GB virtual memory and
provides access to memory protection.

1986 to 1994

The Intel 80386 is a microprocessor, which was used as the central

processing unit (CPU) of many personal computers from 1986 until 1994 and
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later. The 80386 added a 32-bit architecture and a paging translation unit,
which made it much easier to implement operating systems, which used
virtual memory.

80386

80486

The Intel i486 (also called 486 or 80486) is a range of Intel CISC
microprocessors, which is part of the Intel x86 family of processors. The
i486's predecessor was the Intel 80386 processor. The i486 was so named
without the usual 80-prefix, because of a court ruling that you could not
trademark a number (like 80486). Intel dropped number-based naming
altogether with the successor to the i486 – the Pentium processor.

From a software point of view, the instruction set of the i486 family is very
similar to its predecessor, the Intel 80386, with the addition of only a few
extra instructions.
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1993

Pentium

1995

Intel Pentium Pro, often called the P6

• 6th Generation

• External Speed Range: 60—66 MHz

• Internal Speed Range: 166—200 MHz

• Multiplier Range: x2.5—x3

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• L1 Cache: Yes, 16 KB

• L2 Cache: Yes, 256 KB, 512 KB, and 1 MB

• L3 Cache: No

• Package: PCA

• Socket(s) used: Socket 8

1997

Intel Pentium II

Intel Pentium II CPUs

• 6th Generation CPU

• External Speed Range: 66—100 MHz

• Internal Speed Range: 233—450 MHz

• Multiplier Range: x3.5-x4.5

• L1 Cache: Yes, 32 KB

• L2 Cache: Yes, 512 KB

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• L3 Cache: No

• Package: SEC

• Socket(s) used: Slot 1

1999

Intel Pentium III CPUs

• 6th Generation CPU

• External Speed Range: 100—133 MHz

• Internal Speed Range: 450 MHz—l.26 GHz

• Multiplier Range: x4—xlO

• L1 Cache: Yes, 32 KB

• L2 Cache: Yes, 256 KB or 512 KB

• L3 Cache: No

• Package: SEC-2, PCA

• Socket(s) used: Slot 1, Socket 370

2000

Intel Pentium 4 CPUs

• 7th Generation CPU

• External Speed Range: 100 MHz (Quad Speed); 133 MHz (Quad Speed);
200 MHz (Quad Speed)
• Internal Speed Range: 1.3—3.20 GHz
• Multiplier Range: x13—x23
• L1 Cache: Yes, 128 KB
• L2 Cache: Yes, 256 KB, 512 KB
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• L3 Cache: No
• Package: 423-pin PGA, 478-pin PCA
• Socket(s) used: Socket 423, Socket 478.

AMD CPU Product Line

1969: The company started as a producer of logic chips in 1969, the entered
the RAM chip business in 1975. That same year,
it introduced a reverse-engineered clone of the
Intel 8080 microprocessor. During this period,
AMD also designed and produced a series of bit-
slice processor elements (Am2900, Am29116,
Am293xx) which were used in various
minicomputer designs.

1982 to 1995: In February 1982, AMD signed a contract with Intel,

becoming a licensed second-source manufacturer of 8086 and 8088
processors. IBM wanted to use the Intel 8088 in its IBM PC, but IBM's
policy at the time was to require at least two sources for its chips. AMD
later produced the 80286, or 286, under license from Intel.

1995

AMD made a competitor to the Pentium called the AMD K5. The AMD K5
was pin-compatible to the Pentium, but to keep Intel from suing them, AMD
made the K5 very different on the inside, using a totally new (at least for
lntel) method of processing. The AMD K5 had some success but was rather
quickly upstaged by better AMD CPUs.
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1997 to 2000

AMD K6 Series
From 1997 to 2000, AMD produced a series of Super Socket 7 processors
called the K6 (that matched—and in many people’s view, surpassed—the
Pentium II, propelling AMD into serious competition with Intel (Figure 3-62).
Four models were included in the K6 (series: the K6, K6-2, K6-2+, and the
K6-lll, each incorporating more advanced feature~ than the previous model.
The KG processors incorporated a number of improvements including 64 KB
Li cache, extremely advanced pipelining, and support for motherboard
speeds of up to 100 MHz (on later models). The K6-2 added AMD’s
proprietary’ 3DNow!’M instruction set—a significant advancement in graphics-
handling capabilities—and increased clock speeds. The KG-Ill included even
more advancements ii pipelining and added a 25G K L2 cache, all on a
standard Socket 7 PCA package. All K& required a Super Socket 7
motherboard.

AMD K6-Family CPUs

• 6th Generation CPU

• External Speed Range: G6—100 MHz

• Internal Speed Range: 200—550 MHz

• Multiplier Range: x3—x5.5

• L2 Cache: No on K6 and K6-2; Yes, K6-III: 256 KB

• L3 Cache: No

• Package: PGA

• Socket(s) used: Socket 7

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2000

Early AMD Athlon CPUs

Often referred to as “the

CPU that keeps Intel awake at
night,” the Athlon CPU has
evolved from the name of a
single class of CPUs into a
broad overview term covering a number of very different CPUs that
compete head to head against the Pentium III and
Pentium 4. In fact, the first Athlon CPUs were often called K7 CPUs,
although that term faded away after a time. The Athlon was AMD’s first
product to drop any attempt at pin capability with Intel chips. Instead,
AMD decided to make its own AMD-only slots and sockets. The first
Athlon CPUs, often referred to now as classic Athlon” CPUs, used an SEC
package called Slot A that was mechanically compatible but not pin
compatible with Slot 1. In other words, you could snap an Athlon into a
Slot 1 motherboard, but it wouldn’t work.

Classic AMD Athlon CPUs

• 6th Generation CPU

• External Speed Range: 100 MHz (Doubled)

• Internal Speed Range: 500 MHz—1 GHz

• Multiplier Range: x5—xlO

• L1 Cache: Yes, 128 KB

• L2 Cache: Yes, 512 KB

• L3 Cache: No

• Package: SEC

• Socket(s) used: Slot A

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AMD “Thunderbird” Athlon CPUs

The first major improvement to the Athlon CPU was known as the
Thunderbird Athlon. The Thunderbird Athlon is most easily distinguished
from the classic Athlon by returning to a PGA package with the adoption of
the proprietary 462-pin socket called socket A

AMD Thunderbird Athlon CPUs

• 6th Generation CPU

• External Speed Range: 100—133 MHz (Doubted)

• Internal Speed Range: 650 MHz--1.4 GHz

• Multiplier Range: x3.5—x14

• L1 Cache: Yes, 128 KB

• L2 Cache: Yes, 256 KB

• L3 Cache: No

• Package: PCA

• Socket(s) used: Socket A

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AMD Duron
The Duron is AMD’s direct competitor to the Intel Celeron. Basically an
Athlon with a smaller cache, the Duron supports the same 200 MHz
frontside bus as the Athlon, giving it a slight edge over the Celeron. The
Duron enjoys a sizable market on lower-end PCs, although the Celeron
continues to dominate. The Duron connects to the same 462-pin Socket A as
the later Athlon CPUs.

AMD Duron CPUs

• 6th Generation CPU

• External Speed Range: 100 MHz (Doubled)

• Internal Speed Range: 600 MHz--1.3 GHz

• Multiplier Range: x3.5—x14

• L1 Cache: Yes, 128 KB

• L2 Cache: Yes, 64 KB

• L3 Cache: No

• Package: PGA

• Socket(s) used: Socket A

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AMD Athlon XP
Not to be left in the dust by Intel’s Pentium 4, AMD released an upgraded
version of the Athlon Thunderbird called the Athlon XP. Physically, Athlon
XP CPUs look virtually identical to the earlier Athlon processors with the
same regular 462-pin PGA package, but Athlon XP CPUs incorporate a
number of performance enhancements to the Athlon core. Pipeline
improvements combined with very high clock speeds make the Athlon XP the
Pentium 4’s main competitor.
One interesting aspect of the Athlon XP is AMD’s attempt to ignore clock
speeds and instead market the CPUs using a number that matches the
equivalent power of an Intel Pentium 4 processor. For example, the Athlon
XP 1800+ actually runs at 1.6 GHz, but AMD claims it processes as fast or
better than a Pentium 4 1.8 GHz—ergo "180O+.”
AMD Athlon XP CPUs

• 7th Generation CPU

• External Speed Range: 133 MHz, 166 MHz (Dual Speed)

• Internal Speed Range: 1.3 GHz (1500+)—2.16 GHz (3000+)

• Multiplier Range: x13-x16.5

• L1 Cache: Yes, 128 KB

• L2 Cache: Yes, 256 KB, 512 KB

• L3 Cache: No

• Package: 462 pin PGA

• Socket(s) used: Slot A