Officially, Intel is focused on comparing the new SKUs to the first-generation Skylake-SP based Xeon Scalables, where they are touting an average performance gain of 36% for a total increase in perf-per-dollar of 42%. But either way, it’s a big change for the Xeon family. Ultimately, depending on if you view the glass as half-full or half-empty, Intel is either boosting Xeon Scalable performance by upwards of 33%, or cutting prices by even more (50-60%+ in some cases). The updated SKUs are set to deliver sizable performance bumps, effectively replacing some of the already available Xeon Scalable SKUs.ĭepending on the specific SKU, Intel is offering more cores, higher clockspeeds, or more cache than earlier chips – and often, all three at once. Based on the same Cascade Lake silicon as Intel's existing parts, the updated CPUs cover the Gold, Silver, and Bronze tiers (there are no new Platinum chips). To that end, today Intel is launching 18 new “performance- and performance-per-dollar-optimized” Xeon Scalable processors. But there’s no escaping the fact that AMD’s EPYC processors are going to continue to chip away at Intel’s Xeon market share.

The silver lining for Intel, at least, is that they are able to thrive on sheer momentum, as enterprise IT decisions are made on the scale of years. AMD has been able to offer more cores than Intel both on an absolute basis and per-dollar, giving AMD the stronger hand.

However, Intel’s technology situation doesn’t reflect their sales situation: rival AMD’s second-generation EPYC processors have Intel beat in almost every metric, offering better performance and greater energy efficiency, all at lower prices. Intel still can’t make enough 14nm chips – server processors included – to fully meet market demands, which is a very profitable problem to have.

In terms of sales, Intel has seen tremendous success with their data center product portfolio, growing revenue by 19% in a capacity constrained environment. With 18 new CPUs ranging from $306 to $3950, Intel is undertaking a significant shift in their Xeon Gold, Silver, and Bronze lineups, claiming to lift performance, but also rather obviously cutting prices.Ĭoming into 2020, Intel’s server saga continues to be an odd one, even by the sometimes wild fluctuations of the tech industry. Among them is Intel, who decided to use the time to announce a major expansion/realignment of their second-generation Xeon Scalable processors. While this year’s official Mobile World Congress event may have been canceled, a number of vendors are still going ahead with their previously scheduled product announcements and launches.

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