AMD's 'dual core' PC chip

AMD yesterday introduced its Athlon 64 X2 chips at Computex in Taipei,
Taiwan. Computex is one of the world’s largest hardware trade-shows.
Dual-core microprocessors pack two layers of silicon on a single chip in
order to enable the capability of two microprocessors. The dual-core chips
are primarily being targeted at users who like to play games or multi-task.

Hewlett Packard (HP) said it’s ready to support AMD’s dual-core chips;
the company is expected to mass ship dual-core PCs soon. In addition to
HP, custom PC builders are also ready to ship PCs equipped with
dual-core Athlon 64 X2 chips. However, the company’s dual-core offerings
will retail between $537 and $1001 depending upon the speed and other
integrated features, whereas Intel will price its dual-core processors
between $241 and $530. Intel said it’s shipping 100,000 Pentium D
microprocessors this quarter with millions expected to ship later in 2005.