Intel to stop shipping one Core i7 desktop chip later this year

Intel plans to stop selling one of its high-end desktop chips this year, less than one year after it was released, the company confirmed.

The 2.93GHz Core i7 940 processor is one of three desktop chips based on Intel's Nehalem microarchitecture that were released in late 2008. Designed for high-end PCs, the chip includes an on-chip memory controller and support for DDR3 memory and Intel's QuickPath Interconnect technology.

The last date for customers to confirm orders for the Core i7 940 will be Sept. 4, Intel said in a notice.

“We have communicated our shipment plans for Core i7 940 to our customers. It is actively shipping and will ship through 2009.,” Intel spokesman Nick Jacobs wrote in an e-mail.

The Core i7 940 was caught between two more successful products. The 940 didn't sell as well as the 2.66GHz Core i7 920, which was significantly cheaper, and it couldn't match the performance of the 3.2GHz Core i7 965 Extreme Edition, according to a source at a Taiwanese motherboard maker.

Intel is expected to release more advanced desktop chips based on the Nehalem microarchitecture later this year.

In February, the company announced plans to accelerate its shift to a 32-nanometer manufacturing process and the upcoming Nehalem desktop chips, called Clarkdale, will be produced using this process. The more advanced manufacturing process means Clarkdale should run faster and consume less power than existing Core i7 processors.