Intel E2000 launch to spur clearance of Pentium D 900

As Intel is said to unveil its Core 2 Duo E2000 series CPU during late May, industry players believe that the introduction marks the phase out of the Pentium D 900 series in the entry-level market. As Intel is believed to grow capacity proportions for the upcoming E2000 CPUs while clearing inventory of Pentium D 900 by 2008.

The two 65nm-made E2160 and E2140 CPUs are expected to account for 10% of Intel's total capacity during late June and this ratio will triple to 30% in the third quarter, sources at Taiwan-based motherboard makers detailed. The ratio to overall capacity will maintain unchanged through the first quarter of 2008. The Pentium D 900 series CPU will have its inventory reduced, marking the rising role of E2000 in Intel's entry-level market offering.

Although Pentium D series CPUs are also fabricated on 65nm process with the highest frequency hitting 3.4GHz, Core 2 Duo CPUs still lead in terms of performance. This explains why Intel plans to introduce aggressive price cut measures for the Pentium D 900 series in order to meet its goal to clear all inventory by 2008, noted the sources.

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