Intel Delivers Eight-Core Gaming Platform

Intel introduced a desktop platform that supports two Intel quad-core processors for a total of eight processing engines. The Dual Socket Extreme Desktop Platform (formerly codenamed "Skulltrail"), is based on the Intel Desktop Board D5400XS and two Core 2 Extreme QX9775 processors. With the platform, gamers can simultaneously pair graphics cards from companies like NVIDIA and ATI to play today’s latest graphics-intensive titles. "The ground-breaking Intel Desktop Board D5400XS enables the flexibility to pair a variety of quad graphics solutions with two of our fastest desktop processors," Jeff McCrea, senior vice president and general manager of Intel’s Digital Home Group, said in a statement. "The result is stunning PC performance." Each Intel Core 2 Extreme processor QX9775 offers 12MB of L2 cache, a fast 1600 MHz system bus, and four cores running at 3.2 GHz. When paired on the dual-socket Intel Desktop Board D5400XS, the platform breezes through modern benchmarks and advanced workloads, according to a company release. The QX9775 processors are available for $1,499 each, and estimated street pricing for the D5400XS desktop board is $649.