A delay in the release of Intel's Ivy Bridge processor has created a ripple effect that is now said to affect enthusiast-level Ivy Bridge-E parts as well. A leaked Intel roadmap published by ComputerBase reveals that the chip giant isn't planning to release the new micro architecture for LGA 2011 until at least the second half of 2013.
The slide also indicates that the next generation Haswell micro architecture, the successor to Sandy Bridge, is being pushed back until the first half of 2013. Having Haswell and Ivy Bridge-E overlap could be bad news for those that have invested in LGA 2011 as the former could very well outperform the latter, thus putting an end to LGA 2011's short reign as Intel's performance platform.
Plans for a Core i7-3980x are in the works but it's unclear if this will simply be a higher-clocked six-core CPU or if we will see an eight-core chip come to fruition.
Intel launched LGA 2011 as a replacement for LGA 1366 for the performance segment in November 2011. There are currently three Sandy Bridge-E processors available for the platform: an entry-level quad-core Core i7-3820, a mainstream Core i7-3930K with six cores and the top-of-the-line Core i7 Extreme 3960X that boasts a price tag of over $1,000.
Ivy Bridge, Ivy Bridge-E and Haswell are all built using Intel's 22nm manufacturing process and utilize new tri-gate transistors. As explained in our recent tech guide, tri-gate transistors use a three-dimensional fin that allows Intel to cram more transistors into a smaller space and gives electrons roughly three times the surface area to travel when in the 'on' state.