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Period: to
History of Processors
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First 16 bit CPU
16-bit vacuum tube computer Whirlwind I, not technically a processor but it's the first commercial 16-bit computer -
First CPU released
Intel 4004 released in April 1971 (Exact date unknown) -
First 8-Bit CPU released
Intel 8008 released in April 1972 (Exact date unknown) -
First x86 CPU released
Intel releases the 8086, an extension to the 8-bit Intel 8080. It is the first CPU to feature the x86 architecture and one of Intel's most iconic CPUs. -
Intel discontinues 4-Bit processors
8-Bit becomes standard, exact date of 4-Bit CPUs being discontinued unknown. -
1GHz barrier broken
On March 6th 2000, AMD announced the world's first 1GHz CPU to the world, the AMD Athlon, however Intel did claim that they hit 1GHz first with their Pentium III CPU but it was later dismissed. -
First 64-Bit CPU
AMD's Athlon 64 released, the first consumer 64 bit CPU. Used the amd64 extension to x86, hence the modern term of x86-64 as it is merely an extension to Intel's previous x86. Intel released their own 64 bit architecture, ia64, but it was far too hard to work with and developers favoured AMD's amd64. -
First multi core CPU released
In May 2005, AMD released the Athlon 64 X2, the world's first consumer dual core processor. -
Current world record set for clock speed
In November 2012, the current world record for the fastest CPU clock speed was set on an AMD FX 8350 CPU with only 2 of its 8 cores enabled, it hit 8794.33MHz (about 8.8GHz) and was completed on an Asus Crosshair V Formula Z with 2GB DDR3 and a GTX 680 on Windows XP. -
First 2D stacked processors released
In 2017, AMD announced and released their first generation of Ryzen processors. They are the first CPUs to feature a "2D Stacking" design, also known as chiplets. -
First 7NM processor released
On July 7th 2019, AMD finally overtook Intel on advancement of manufacturing processes by releasing their 3rd generation Ryzen processors on a 7NM manufacturing node.
