New Intel Core i5 chip surfaces on retailer's Web site

IDG News Service - Details of an upcoming Core i5 processor from Intel have surfaced on a retailer's Web site.

The Core i5-570 processor will run at 2.66GHz and include 8MB of cache, according to FadFusion. The chip, targeted at mainstream desktops, is priced at $233.

The processor belongs to the new Core i5 line of processors, which are rumored to launch next month. Intel already offers quad-core Core i7 chips for high-end desktops, and is later expected to launch Core i3 chips for low-end desktops.

The number of cores on the processor weren't specified in the retail listing. However, according to Intel's road map, the Core i5 chips might be quad-core processors. Observers are associating upcoming Core i5 chips with quad-core chips code-named Lynnfield, but Intel hasn't made that official. Intel is also developing dual-core chips code-named Clarkdale, which could be reserved for the Core i3 processors.

Intel declined comment on existence of the chip, but said that Lynnfield and Clarkdale chips were on track for production in the second half of this year. A campus computer store at the University of Maine, Computer Connection, is also carrying the Core i5-570 chip at a price of $244.

Some supporting hardware for Core i5 processors has already been announced, including motherboards from Gigabyte and Asustek.

Benchmarks for another Core i5 processor, Core i5-750, have been posted on multiple Web sites like PC Games Hardware. The quad-core chip has similar specifications as the Core i5-570, running at 2.67GHz, with 8MB of cache, and it draws about 95 watts of power.

Based on Intel's latest Nehalem microarchitecture, Core i5 chips will improve system performance. Nehalem integrates a memory controller inside a processor, creating a faster communication channel between the processor and memory.