Intel is allegedly poised to release not two but three processor families for its 10-nanometer chips, which will make this the second node after 14-nanometer to boast three product lines instead of two.
For the unfamiliar, the 14nm node already has Broadwell and Skylake. Intel is also said to be launching a "stopgap product" given the moniker Kaby Lake in the latter half of 2016.
Now, according to a report from The Motley Fool, the financial online publication reveals that Intel is gearing up to release the follow-up of its Icelake processor, which is codenamed Tigerlake.
Currently, Intel's release schedule for its 10-nanometer chips line-up comprises the Cannonlake - which the company has revealed is slated to release in 2017 - and will be the first 10nm chip from its stables. Cannonlake is also anticipated to be the first-ever consumer processor whose capabilities will extend beyond quad-core.
This chips release per the site's sources will be followed by the second chip dubbed Icelake, a year later in 2018. Now sources of The Motley Fool have let on that the third and final CPU in the trio - dubbed Tigerlake - will be launched in the latter half of 2019, which is a year after Icelake's launch.
"Management has told investors that they are pushing to try to get back to a two-year cadence post-10-nanometer (presumably they mean a two-year transition from 10-nanometer to 7-nanometer), however, from what I have just learned from a source familiar with Intel's plans, the company is working on three, not two, architectures for the 10-nanometer node," reveals the publication.
Based on this information and cycle, Intel is anticipated to launch the 7-nanometer processor architecture in the latter half of 2020. If things pan out according to Intel's plans, then the chip maker could potentially be looking at transitioning to 5-nanometer node technology from the 7-nanometer one. However, this would take two more years and is expected to bear fruition by H2 2022.
The publication's source, however, is not of the opinion that Intel will be able to go back to its two-year for each technology cycle.
With the chip maker looking to boost its chipset line-up with 10-nanometer node technology, it will be interesting how rivals such as TSMC - who reportedly intend to start the mass production of 7-nanometer chips in the initial half of 2018 - will perform in the long term. Whether Intel's rivals are able to capitalize on its slow development process remains to be seen.
