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Thursday, April 27th, 2017
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| 8:00a | AT20 Giveaway Day 2: An HTC U Ultra 64GB for You
Continuing our 20 day celebration of AnandTech’s 20th anniversary, we’re now on Day 2 of our giveaways. If yesterday’s AMD gear didn’t catch your fancy, then perhaps today’s will with our first mobile-focused giveaway. For today’s giveaway the awesome crew over at HTC has sent over one of their unlocked 64GB HTC U Ultra phones, the company’s current flagship smartphone. The AnandTech 20th Anniversary Celebration - HTC Giveaway The HTC U Ultra is a 5.7-inch phone that incorporates Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 821 SoC, along with an X12 modem, 4GB of LPDDR4 RAM, 64GB of UFS 2.0 flash storage, a 12MP “UltraPixel 2” camera with OIS, a 2560x1440p LCD paired with a 160x1040 LCD for the bezel, and a 3000 mAh battery. In terms of build quality, the HTC U Ultra uses aluminum frame paired with a curved glass back, and Gorilla Glass 5 for the screen on the front. Our own Matt Humrick had a chance to get hands-on with the HTC U Ultra back at CES 2017, in case you’re looking for further details and impressions.
This specific phone is their unlocked model for the US, which means it’s primarily designed for use on AT&T and T-Mobile’s networks. Though it should work on most other GSM networks too, with LTE coverage depending on what bands a carrier uses. For those curious, the specific LTE bands supported by this phone are: FDD: Bands B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B17/B20/B28
TDD: Bands B38/B39/B40/B41 with 2CA, 3CA Finally, as with our other giveaways, today’s giveaway is only open for 48 hours, so be sure to enter soon. However please note that for legal reasons, we’re only able to open these giveaways to residents of the United States. Good luck everyone! And be sure to check in tomorrow for our next giveaway. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 9:30a | Skylake-SP Xeon List Published: Moving from E7/E5 Naming to Xeon Gold and Xeon Platinum
Presumably by accident, Intel this week has published a list of its upcoming processors that belong to the soon-to-launch Skylake Xeon families. The names were published by Intel in a PCN, or Product Change Notification, which makes it likely that this was an accidental disclosure. In the PCN, it details that LGA3647 CPUs (which covers Xeon Phi processors and the upcoming Skylake Xeons) will have an arrow indicating which way processors should be oriented in the socket. It seems like an arbitrary PCN, just printing an arrow on a heat spreader, which makes this published list somewhat unexpected. But these names show the key parts of the Purley platforms for servers. One of the poorly kept secrets in the industry over the last few weeks is that Intel is changing the nomenclature of its Xeon CPUs going forward. This will be a difficult change to explain, given that users are so familiar with the previous naming system, and the translation between old and new is not a simple one-to-one mapping. Skylake-SP thus introduces the new Xeon Gold and Xeon Platinum lineups for different markets of servers. We expect all these CPUs to be on LGA3647, given that the PCN seems to suggest that this singular print marking on the heatspreader was not on this socket design before. Unfortunately, the published list does not have full CPU information, but we do get names and frequencies of 34 Skylake-SP processors (see details below) that will belong to the Xeon Gold and Xeon Platinum lineups, as well as the fact that these processors are designated with the H0 stepping. We might not see all these processors at launch (which at this time has still not officially been announced), and we expect Intel to expand the Xeon Gold/Platinum family with new models over the several quarters following the launch. Based on the document, the initial Xeon Gold family will consist of 20 processors featuring 5000- and 6000-series model numbers. The Xeon Platinum lineup will feature 14 chips belonging to the 8000-series.
Most importantly, the PCN confirms that Intel is about to scrap its Xeon E5/E7 naming nomenclature for something different with the introduction of the Skylake-SP/EP processors. Instead of E5 and E7, Intel will call its CPUs for 2P and 4P/MP servers Xeon Gold and Xeon Platinum. Moreover, the feature-sets of chips aimed at different kinds of servers will also be different, just like today. The upcoming Xeon Gold CPUs will work in 2P configurations and will thus replace the existing Xeon E5-series. Meanwhile, it is logical to assume then the replacement for the Xeon E7 will be called the Xeon Platinum, and apart from higher maximum core count will also support various additional capabilities, including RAS features. We suspect that there will be more names than Gold and Platinum coming to market to cover other aspects of Intel's product stack. In the processor stack above, we also get T and M processors in the mix. T processors have historically been lower power processors, and this is likely still the case given that the T processors have lower frequencies than most of the rest of the CPUs. Some CPUs, like the Xeon Gold 6130 and 6130T, are at 2.0 GHz for both: this is likely relating to different turbo frequencies, but also the T product is binned for lower power. The M processors are somewhat of a mystery, as we've never had M on a processor before, except in mobile. Speculating a bit on our part, this could be a reference to MCDRAM, which is a feature we see on Xeon Phi processors. Although to be clear, we have nothing to suggest that Intel will be including MCDRAM on these parts, as the Xeon CPU die itself may be big and the MCDRAM silicon is also relatively sizeable. We suspect that the M processors will have a given feature or features in common, which might come at an extra expense in the final price tag. In previous generations, Intel typically creates three different core designs for it's latest Xeons: a low core count (LCC), medium/high core count (MCC/HCC, depending on the document), and an extreme core count (XCC) version. The XCC version has the highest amount of cores, the most cache, and costs the most, but typically the per-core frequency is low. Intel sometimes offers the XCC in a small core count configuration, but with a large cache, and something like the Xeon Platinum 8156 at 3.6 GHz most likely fits that description. One of the things that should seem obvious is that the naming of each processor is not linear with clock frequency. For example, the Gold 6150 runs at 2.7 GHz base, but the Gold 6152 runs at 2.1 GHz base. Using that fourth digit extensively means that we hope Intel has a strong and obvious way to describe which part of the CPU names mean specific things. At this point it is hard to see a specific pattern, given we do not know core counts. Disclaimer: There's a significant amount of information in the ecosystem about the upcoming Skylake-SP platform, mostly from leaks that we can't personally confirm. So while we appreciate there is information out there, we've kept this analysis specifically to what is confirmed or could be inferred, as per AnandTech policy. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 11:00a | Razer Announces The Lancehead Gaming Mice
Today Razer is launching a pair of gaming mice into their lineup. The Razer Lancehead Wireless Gaming Mouse, and the Razer Lancehead Tournament Edition are the two new models, and perhaps just as interesting is that they are also announcing a new version of their configuration software, dubbed Razer Synapse Pro, which is currently in beta. Both of the new mice feature an ambidextrous body, which should please those who prefer using the mouse with their left hand, and of course both mice support Razer's Chroma lighting.
First up is the Lancehead Wireless Gaming Mouse. Wireless mice have come a long way, but they can still have issues in a group environment due to interference on the frequencies the radios operate at. This has been an ongoing issue since the dawn of time, and there are various methods to combat this. Razer is announcing a new technology in their repertoire to try to assist with these issues, and they are calling it Adaptive Frequency Technology (AFT). None of this is new science of course, since frequency hopping is par for the course, but Razer is advertising their AFT should help with latency by choosing the strongest interference-free channel when it starts, and only hopping when necessary. There’s nothing really unique about doing this, but with good error correction it should help. Razer is claiming that it outperforms every other wireless gaming mouse. Frankly it would be nice to see some of these devices move off of the extremely crowded 2.4 GHz frequency altogether, and with the relatively short distance from a mouse to a PC, it’s strange that they stick with the 2.4 GHz band.
In addition to the wireless component, the Lancehead comes with a 16,000 DPI sensor with 210 inches-per-second tracking and it can handle up to 50 G of acceleration. It also features mechanical mouse switches that Razer co-developed with Omron, and Razer is claiming lower latency on the clicks, as well as up to 50 million clicks of durability. The second mouse is similar to the first, but ditches the wireless connection for a USB cable. The Razer Lancehead Tournament Edition also supports up to 450 inches-per-second of speed, and the same 16,000 DPI and 50 G acceleration as the wireless model.
Razer is also announcing the new Razer Synapse Pro software, which will be released soon. The Lancehead owners will be the first to get a chance to use the new software. Synapse Pro supports both cloud and on-device storage for mouse settings, which is a welcome change from the existing software, which requires an online account to sync the mouse settings, and do most of the other configuration. The new Synapse Pro will allow a user to access their device profile on any computer without requiring an internet connection. Finally. Razer will be offering the new mice for pre-order now, with shipments of the Tournament Edition starting now with worldwide availability in April/May, and the Lancehead Wireless Gaming Mouse will be available in the May/June timeframe. Pricing starts at $79.99 USD for the wired version, and $139.99 for the wireless model. Source: Razer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4:45p | Micron Hires New CEO: Sanjay Mehrotra, SanDisk Co-Founder And Former CEO
In February, Micron CEO Mark Durcan announced his retirement after three decades with the company. Durcan had previously announced plans to retire in 2012 while serving as the company's president, but the death of then-CEO Steve Appleton prompted Durcan to postpone his retirement indefinitely to serve as Micron's CEO. Micron's board of directors has now selected Sanjay Mehrotra to be the new president and CEO of Micron. Durcan will step down and be replaced by Mehrotra effective May 8, 2017.
Mehrotra's background includes co-founding SanDisk in 1988 and serving as its president and CEO from 2011 until its acquisition in 2016 by Western Digital. Prior to serving as CEO of SanDisk, Mehrotra had been the chief operating officer, head of engineering and chief of product development. Under Mehrotra's leadership SanDisk's annual revenue peaked at $6.6 billion and the company sold for $16 billion in 2016 to Western Digital. With long experience leading a major memory manufacturer, Mehrotra is one of the most highly-qualified candidates possible to take over at Micron. Outgoing CEO Mark Durcan will be stepping down as CEO and from the board of directors effective May 8 but plans to stay on as an advisor until early August. Mehrotra plans to divide his time between Micron headquarters in Boise, Idaho and Micron's Silicon Valley offices in Milpitas, California, a few blocks from SanDisk headquarters. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 9:00p | Acer Announces Predator X27 Monitor: 4K@144 Hz with DCI-P3, HDR10, & G-Sync
At its annual Next@Acer event, Acer formally introduced the Predator X27, its new flagship gaming display. The company's first HDR monitor, the Predator X27 is Acer's implementation of NVIDIA's prototype HDR monitor design, which we first saw back at CES 2017. So like NVIDIA's prototype, Acer is aiming for the top with this monitor, offering 4K, HDR, a wide color gamut, and a high refresh rate all in a single display. Unfortunately for those of you eager to shell out for the Rolls-Royce of gaming monitors, you'll have to wait a bit longer; Acer is not announcing a release date or a price at this time. By the numbers, the Predator X27 offers a 4K resolution, a 144 Hz refresh rate, a 1000-nits brightness, and uses a quantum dot film to enable HDR10 and the DCI-P3 color gamut. To further appeal to gamers, the Predator X27 also supports NVIDIA’s G-Sync HDR technology as well as Tobii eye-tracking. The new unit is one of a few announced 4K displays to support such a high refresh rate along with HDR10 and NVIDIA’s G-Sync HDR technology. The Acer Predator X27 is based on AU Optronics’ M270QAN02.2 AHVA panel with a 3840×2160 resolution, 178°/178° horizontal/vertical viewing angles, up to 1,000 nits brightness, a 4 ms response time and a 144 Hz refresh rate. The monitor comes with a direct LED backlighting system with 384 zones, which ensures both high brightness as well as better contrast ratios through localized dimming. The backlighting system is further enhanced with a quantum dot film in order to give the monitor wide color gamut capabilities, allowing it to display 96% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, which pairs up nicely with its HDR support via the HDR10 format. Finally, the Predator X27 features NVIDIA's G-Sync HDR variable refresh rate technology. To take full advantage of the Predator X27 monitor, gamers are going to need an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 10-series graphics card with a DisplayPort 1.4 connector. NVIDIA & Acer are using every bit of bandwidth offered by DisplayPort 1.4 here, and even that's not enough; the X27's bandwidth requirements actually exceed what DisplayPort can provide. As a result the monitor (like all monitors based on the NVIDIA design) will use 4:2:2 chroma subsampling when gaming to stay within the bandwidth confines of DisplayPort 1.4. Meanwhile as you might expect, the display's lone HDMI 2.0 port is limited to 60Hz operation. In addition, expect the display to require a USB cable to control the Tobii eye-tracking hardware.
To date, only Acer and ASUS have announced gaming displays powered by the M270QAN02.2 AHVA panel from AUO and supporting 4Kp144 with a 1,000 nits brightness, quantum dots, and HDR10. Such monitors in many ways represent a new generation of gaming displays that support not only a high resolution and refresh rate, but also the DCI-P3 color saturation, advanced backlighting with local dimming, and so on.
Acer remained tight-lipped about pricing and availability timeframe of its Predator X27 display, but since AU Optronics is reportedly kicking off mass production of its M270QAN02.2 in July, it is likely that Acer, ASUS and other companies that use the panel may start selling their products on its base in late Q3, or early Q4 2017. As for pricing, we may well be talking about devices with MSRPs north from $1500 (some whispers say so), but Acer and its rivals yet have to announce their MSRPs. Gallery: Acer Predator X27
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| 10:00p | Intel Announces Q1 2017 Financial Results: Record Quarter
Today Intel announced their earnings for Q1 of their 2017 fiscal year, and the results were good. Intel delivered record revenue for the quarter, of $14.8 billion, up from $13.7 billion a year ago. Intel is a company that loves their margins, and they were once again over 60% for the quarter, coming in at 61.8%, which is 2.5 percentage points higher year-over-year. Operating income was up 40% to $3.6 billion, and net income was up 45% to $3.0 billion, which resulted in earnings-per-share of $0.61 for the quarter, also up 45% from a year ago. This is even though Q1 2016 was 14 weeks, versus 13 weeks in 2017.
Intel’s Client Computing Group continued to have gains, with revenue for the quarter up 6% to $7.976 billion. Significantly for Intel, operating income for this segment jumped from $1.885 billion a year ago, to $3.031 billion this year. While we’ve seen the company forced to slow down its movement to smaller processes, the current 14nm node has been well refined and the Kaby Lake processors have been solid performers. The next generation 10nm node is looking very promising though, with Intel claiming 25% better performance and 45% lower power consumption versus Kaby Lake thanks to the density improvements.
The Data Center Group also had gains, with revenues up 6% year-over-year to $4.232 billion, although the growth has slowed somewhat. Operating income for the group was $1.487 billion for the quarter, down from $1.764 billion a year ago. This will be an interesting space to watch with increased competition in both the x86 and ARM space, but Intel will be releasing new Xeon chips as well with a change in branding. The Internet of Things Group continued to show gains as well, with revenue up 11% year-over-year to $721 million, and up 35% since Q1 2015, so in two years they have seen some substantial growth in this segment. Non-Volatile Memory Solutions Group had the largest jump in revenue, with revenue up 55% to $866 million. However, this group also saw an operating loss increase to $129 million, compared to a $95 million loss a year ago. This should be an exciting segment to watch though with Intel bringing their Optane products to market, with both the DC P4800X SSD and Optane caching memory. If you haven’t checked out those reviews yet, they are well worth the read, and 3D XPoint definitely brings some advantages even on a Gen 1 product. Intel’s Security Group is showing its final mention in their earnings, since Intel’s divestiture of the group closed on April 3, 2017, and subsequently it will fall in to the “All Other” category starting next quarter. Revenue for this group was pretty flat, at $534 million, compared to $537 million a year ago. Operating income was up to $95 million though, from $85 million last year. The Programable Solutions Group, which is Intel’s FPGA segment, had a revenue increase of 18% to 425 million, and an operating income of $92 million, compared to an operating loss of $200 million a year ago. Finally, the All Other category had revenues of $42 million and an operating loss of $1.082 billion. Looking towards next quarter, Intel is forecasting revenues of $14.4 billion, plus or minus $500 million, and a gross margin around 62%, give or take a couple of points. Source: Intel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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