Here's some good reading:
Conroe
In October 2006, leaked Intel roadmaps unveiled that Intel plans to release four additional Core 2 Duo Processors. The release in 2007 will coincide with that of the Intel Bearlake chipset. The new processors will be the Core 2 Duo E6650, E6750, E6800, and E6850. Processors with a number ending in "50" will have a 1333 MT/s FSB. The processors will all have 4 MB of L2 cache. Their clock frequency will be similar to that of the already released processors with the same first two digits (E6600, E6700, X6800).
Kentsfield
As noted above, Intel plans to release mainstream versions of the Kentsfield quad-core processor, and brand them Core 2 Quad. (mainstream version is Q6600,Q6400)
Penryn
The successor to the Merom, code-named Penryn will most likely debut the 45 nanometer process that will be also used for the Kentsfield sequel, Yorkfield. Announcements about Penryn are expected by mid-2007. Its successor should be Nehalem.
Yorkfield
Earlier media reports suggested Yorkfield to be an octa-core (eight-core) processor consisting of 2 dies with four cores each. However the newest rumours indicate that Yorkfield will be the quad-core successor to the Kentsfield processor. It will have a 45 nanometer process, and be a single die design, unlike the Kentsfield, which has been compared to basically two separate Conroe cores in one socket. The Yorkfield will have 8 MB of fully shared L2 cache (the Kentsfield has two separate 4MB L2 caches, shared separately by each pair of processors). An across-the-board increase in bus speed (connection to the northbridge, etc.) to be greater than 1333 MT/s is hoped for by this point, as all processors will be primarily limited by the bus bandwidth. This may prove to be difficult, as past advancements in bus speed have come coupled with changes in how the data is sent. Yorkfield is also expected to be released supporting DDR3 memory (1333 MHz DDR), as suggested by certain enthusiast websites.
Allendale
An E4300 Allendale (1.8 GHz, 800 MT/s FSB) will be released in the 1st quarter of 2007.
Merom
Merom was released on July 27, 2006, and has since been adopted by notebook manufacturers.
A second wave of Merom processors featuring an 800 MT/s FSB and using the new Socket P is expected to launch in April 2007. These chips will be part of the platform codenamed Santa Rosa. Low voltage versions are also planned for release in the same timeframe.
Conroe-L
Intel will offer a low-cost single-core version of Conroe, code-named "Conroe-L", starting from the second quarter 2007, according to an article on DailyTech. The new Conroe-L processors will not carry the Core nomenclature. Instead Intel is resuscitating the Pentium and Celeron brands for Conroe-L based products.
The New Conroe-L processors shall be named Pentium E2xxx series. It supports 800MHz FSB and only has 1MB L2 Cache.
Second-Generation Quad-Core Chip from Intel to Come in Q3 2007.
Intel to Improve Quad-Core Processors in Q3 2007
Category: CPU
Intel Corp., the world's largest chipmaker, will release what is generally called “native†quad-core processor in the third quarter of the year 2007, according to several media reports and rumours circulating around Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco, California.
The microprocessor code-named Yorkfield will feature single-die design as well as unified level-two (L2) cache, which should boost its efficiency when compared to Intel's first-generation quad-core offerings that have two-dice design and have to cooperate using processor system bus (PSB). Yorkfield is expected to feature 1333MHz PSB and be compatible with chipsets code-named Bearlake, which also support DDR3 memory.
It is interesting to note that earlier media reports indicated that Yorkfield is a code-name for Intel's octa-core (eight-core) microprocessor that consists of two dice made using 45nm process technology. Those octa-core (eight-core) were originally expected to be released in 2008 or beyond. Meanwhile, Intel's first single-die quad-core chip was earlier rumoured to be code-named Bloomfield. Given that current information comes from unofficial sources and roadmaps tend to be changed rather quickly, it is highly-likely that the chips may have different code-names and/or specifications.
Intel Corp. will commercialize its first quad-core microprocessors as early as in November, 2006, about six months ahead of AMD, which is likely to add competitive pressure on the world's second largest supplier of x86 microprocessors. But AMD believes that Intel's approach to put two dice on a single slice of substrate to build a quad-core processor is inefficient and AMD's “native†single-die quad-core design will provide better performance and scalability for servers. On the other hand, AMD may not hold advantage of having the world's only x86 single-die quad-core chip, as Intel's code-named Yorkfield may be launched just several months after, in Q3 2007.