Xeon Gold U-Series: Intel’s response to AMD’s 1P Only Epyc SKUs
Earlier this month, Intel introduced more than 50 models of its second-generation Xeon server CPUs based on the Cascade Lake-SP architecture. However, it looks like the Santa Clara chipmaker didn’t reveal all its newer chips after all.
Some Intel Xeon Gold models including the Xeon Gold 6212U, 6210U and 6209U stayed under the radar. These are single-socket processors without UPI links that will be available at a much lower price. The Xeon “U”-series chips will reportedly rival AMD’s Epyc “P”-series processors.
Intel Xeon Gold 62xxU Single-Socket Only SKUs at a Competitive Price
Spotted by the website ServeTheHome, the 2nd Gen series of Intel’s Xeon Scalable Processors features the special 1P variants for servers with only one CPU socket. These processors are not listed among the 58 models mentioned on Intel ARK, but they are found through the search function.
The Xeon Gold 62xxU CPUs appear to be based around the other Xeon chips in the list. The only difference is that the U-series chips have no UPI links, and are therefore only suitable for single-socket servers. The normal Xeon Gold SKUs support up to four sockets, and the Xeon Premium even up to eight sockets.
The Intel Xeon Gold 6212U has the same feature set as the Xeon Platinum 8260. Both have 24 cores and 48 threads, with a 2.4GHz base clock and a 3.9GHz turbo boost. The Xeon Gold 6210U also shares a 165W TDP, but it lacks UPI links and thus costs only $2000 compared to the whopping $4702 list price of the Xeon Platinum 8260.
Similarly, the 20-core, 40-thread Xeon Gold 6210U seems to be a counterpart to the Xeon Gold 6248, with a 2.5GHz base clock, 3.9GHz turbo clock, and a 150W TDP. It offers the exact same specs of the 6248 expect for socket support, at just under half the cost, i.e., $1500.
Intel Xeon Gold 6209U is another 20-core CPU, which is based on the Xeon Gold 6230, featuring the same 2.1GHz base clock, 3.9GHz turbo clock, and a 150W TDP. Intel hasn’t mentioned the pricing for this one yet, but it should also be well below the 6230’s $1900 list price – probably around $1000.
| Cores / Threads | Base Clock | Boost Clock | Cache | TDP | UPI Links | Price | |
| Xeon Platinum 8260 | 24 / 48 | 2.40GHz | 3.90GHz | 36 MB | 165W | 3 | $4,702 |
| Xeon Gold 6212U | 24 / 48 | 2.40GHz | 3.90GHz | 36 MB | 165W | – | $2,000 |
| Xeon Gold 6248 | 20 / 40 | 2.50GHz | 3.90GHz | 28 MB | 150W | 3 | $3,078 |
| Xeon Gold 6210U | 20 / 40 | 2.50GHz | 3.90GHz | 28 MB | 150W | – | $1,500 |
| Xeon Gold 6230 | 20 / 40 | 2.10GHz | 3.90GHz | 28 MB | 125W | 3 | $1,900 |
| Xeon Gold 6209U | 20 / 40 | 2.10GHz | 3.90GHz | 28 MB | 125W | – | TBD |
The U-series Xeon Gold CPUs seem to be a late reaction from Intel to AMD Epyc in the single-socket sector. Launched back in 2017, AMD has an entire P-series of Epyc processors with an aggressive single-socket mainstream pricing. Intel has lagged in terms of the price per core and clock, but this could finally change with the Xeon Gold U processors.
