Digital-Daily : CPU & Memory : cpu_intel_atom_230_diamondville

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CPU Intel Atom 230 (Diamondville)

Author: Date: 19.08.2008

A year ago, Intel announced the release of a new CPU series - Atom. These new CPUs are aimed solely at mobile computers, and their specifications fully meet the requirements of such devices. This first of all applies to power consumption which is below 4W (TDP). Such low indicators have been achieved due to a new architecture which does not resemble any of the previous Intel's architectures, although uses some of the features. The core comprises 47 mln transistors, and because they are manufactured following the 45-nm process technology it becomes clear why Atom is such a miniature and power-saving CPU.

Currently, Intel offers two series of the Atom processor in its assortment. The first is named Z (processors Z500-Z540), it is based on the Silverthorne core and is aimed at mobile systems of the MID class (Mobile Internet Devices). The second series based on the Diamondville core was announced quite recently (in March this year) and includes two models (N270 and 230). It is aimed at desktop systems (Nettops) and value notebooks (Netbooks).

All Atom processors offer L1 56 K cache size, 32 K of which is reserved for the instructions cache and 24 K - for data. Also, all the processors are able executing 32-bit code and support additional instruction sets MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, and SSSE3. As regards 64-bit code (x86-64), it is supported by only the Diamondville core and only in the Atom 230 model. Currently, all the Atom processors are single-core. At the same time, they offer support for the Hyper-Threading which allows executing two parallel command streams.

Closer to the end of 2008, Intel is planning to release first dual-core Atom processors. There are rumors in the Internet regarding the model Atom 330 which will run at 1.6 GHz (FSB=533 MHz), with 512 K of L2 cache reserved per each core.

Atom processors of the Z series support the virtualization technology, as well as the C1E Speedstep power-saving technology. Besides the Z series, the C1E Speedstep is supported by Atom N270 built on the Diamondville core.

The assortment of Atom processors is quite wide, and includes two cores for various systems. To avoid a mishmash, it is important to note that the processors operate with certain chipsets, and it is just they which determine the purpose of the final product. Along with new processors, Intel has release a series of chipsets UL11L, US15L, US15W which are also aimed at operation of the Atom series Z processors (the Silverthorne core).

The chipsets offer similar specifications, each comprising a chip that implements functionality of the "north" and "south" bridges. The new chipsets support Intel Atom processors having the system bus speeds 100 or 133 MHz (400/533 MHz QPB), offer the integrated single-channel controller for 400- or 533-MHz DDR2 memory (the maximum memory capacity makes up 1 GB). Also, the chipsets of the new series offer the integrated graphic core Intel GMA500 which along with 3D graphics provides hardware decoding of the video formats H.264, MPEG2, VC1, and WMV9. At the same time, they support the D-SUB and DVI-I, as well as TV-Out outputs. Besides, there is the bus controller PCI Express spec 1.0.

A few words on the expansion options of the UL and US chipsets - they support one IDE link, eight USB 2.0 ports, as well as the HD audio subsystem.

The chipsets UL11L, US15L, US15W are a component part of the Centrino Atom 2 platform which also includes Atom processors, Wi-Fi, WiMAX, and 3G modules. The heat emission of UL11L is 1.6W, and that for chipsets of the US series - no more than 2.3W. In the end, the overall heat emission of the "UL11L + Atom CPU" combination is merely 2.25W! That is just what is needed for mobile devices since the unparalleled low power consumption provides a long operation time.

As regards the processors Atom N270 and Atom 230 built on the Diamondville core, they are aimed at cheap, power-saving and small-size systems (Nettops and Netbooks) with the 945GC chipset. That is just the system, namely, the motherboard, we are testing now:

Note that the massive radiator with a fan is meant for cooling the chipset, and the CPU itself uses a low-profile radiator (shown on long shot).

Externally, the CPU looks like this:

As you can see, the Atom 230 processor is soldered into the motherboard, so you won't be able upgrading the system. If the CPU is "burnt down" as a result of overclocking, then you will have to replace the motherboard as a whole.

The CPU-Z utility displays the following information:

This version of the utility gives an incorrect reading for the CPU core (Silverthorne, instead of the right Diamondville).

Below are the specifications of the motherboard Gigabyte GC230D:

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	Content:
	Page 1 - Intel Atom 230 Page 2 - Gigabyte GC230D: board layout and features Page 3 - BIOS. Overclocking and stability Page 4 - Performance. Final Words Top Stories: MoBo: ECS X58B-A (Intel X58) ASUS Rampage II Extreme (Intel X58) MSI DKA790GX and ECS A780GM-A Ultra MSI P7NGM (NVIDIA GeForce 9300) Intel X58 and ASUS P6T Deluxe MSI P45 Neo2 (Intel P45) Foxconn A7GMX-K (AMD 780G) VGA Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295 – a new leader in 3D graphics! ECS HYDRA GeForce 9800GTX+. Water-cooled and SLI "all-in-one" Radeon HD 4830 CrossFire - better than Radeon HD 4870! XFX GeForce GTX 260 Black Edition in the SLI mode Leadtek WinFast PX9500 GT DDR2 – better than GeForce 9500GT DDR-3 Palit Radeon HD 4870 Sonic: exclusive, with unusual features Palit HD 4850 Sonic: almost Radeon HD 4870, priced as HD 4850 CPU & Memory: GSkill high-capacity memory modules CPU Intel Core i7-920 (Bloomfield) DDR3 memory: late 2008 CPU AMD Phenom X3 8750 (Toliman) AMD Phenom X4 9850 – a top-end CPU at affordable price CPU Intel Atom 230 (Diamondville) Chaintech Apogee GT DDR3 1600