Intel Pentium 4 1.4GHz & 1.5GHz

Looking at the actual i850 Memory Controller Hub (MCH) you’ll see from the picture below that it looks more like a processor than an Intel chipset. 

The chipset also requires the presence of a heatsink, and the one on Intel’s D850GB Pentium 4 board is quite large in comparison to what we’re used to from chipset heatsinks. 

Click to Enlarge

As we mentioned in our latest Intel Roadmap article the biggest downside to the i850 chipset aside from its RDRAM only support is that the chipset is currently priced at close to twice as much as any other chipset.  While even the most expensive AMD 760 chipset is selling for $39 (North Bridge & South Bridge), the i850 (MCH + ICH2) is going for an expensive $75.  This is going to make Pentium 4 motherboards very expensive, you’re looking at a minimum of $200 for an i850 board. 

A new chip requires a new…Case & Power Supply?

Along with the Pentium 4 Intel is introducing support and a need for the new ATX 2.03 specification.  This specification basically makes room for the mounting holes for the Pentium 4’s heatsink retention mechanism in the case.  This unfortunately means that current cases, without modifying the motherboard tray, won’t work with the Pentium 4 with its heatsink attached.  If you’ve really got a lot of money invested in your case you can try and make your own mounting holes by lining up your motherboard and making the appropriate marks to drill through on the tray. 

The next big change is with the power supply.  The ATX 2.03 spec calls for an ATX12V power supply which supports the additional power connector required by i850 boards.  This additional +12V power connector allows for additional power to be supplied to the motherboard around the CPU.  With CPUs increasing in clock frequency and drawing more and more power, this helps to keep things stable in an area of the motherboard where current draw is at the highest levels.