Intel will formally announce 64-bit Pentium 4 processors on 1 August - just over a month after launching the first Xeon CPU with its EM64 technology.

So claim sources "familiar with Intel's plans" via a timetable leaked to Xbit Labs.

The 1 August date is well ahead of Intel's broad desktop release timeframe, which pegs the arrival of 64-bit desktop Pentium 4s to the availability of 'Longhorn', the next major release of Windows.

The solution to the conundrum is simple: Intel is enabling 64-bit processing in the Pentium 4 chips it sells into the single-processor workstation market, and they're unlikely to be offered in single, boxed quantities. We understand that the 64-bit P4s will be priced much the same as current desktop-oriented P4s at comparable clock speeds.

A month or so before the 1 August launch, on 27 June, Intel will reportedly ship 'Nocona', the first Xeon with 64-bit support. On the same date, it will ship its E7525 chipset, which supports the new server/workstation processor. ®

Related stories

Intel unveils 64-bit capable Xeon
Intel adds more muscle to Xeon MP
Itanium and Opteron show spotty sales
Intel says Adios to Tejas and Jayhawk chips
The point of Itanium keeps floating with new chips