PowerPC 970
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Image:IMacG5guts.png In computing, the PowerPC 970, PowerPC 970FX, PowerPC 970GX, and PowerPC 970MP, also known as PowerPC G5, are 64-bit processors in the PowerPC family from IBM, which was introduced in 2002. The PowerPC 970 is built using a 130nm manufacturing process, and the PowerPC 970FX and 970MP are built using a 90nm fabrication process. The 970 and 970FX feature over 58 million transistors, while the 970MP contains two cores, consisting of over 116 million transistors. They are based on the core from IBM's POWER4 processor, and feature IBM's VMX vector engine (a.k.a. AltiVec or Velocity Engine), also used in Freescale's (formerly Motorola) G4 (PowerPC 74xx). Additionally, they are able to process 32-bit PowerPC instructions natively.
In keeping with its previous naming conventions, Apple Computer termed the PowerPC 970 the G5 in an announcement in June, 2003. The term G5 in this context stands for the fifth generation of PowerPC microprocessors. In 2004, the PowerPC 970FX replaced the PowerPC 970 in all of Apple's G5 computers. In late 2005, the 970MP replaced the 970FX in Apple's high end Power Mac G5 computers, while the iMac G5 and the 'legacy' Power Mac G5 continued to use the 970FX processor. In early 2006, IBM announced the PowerPC 970GX, a slightly redesigned 970FX core that reached 3 GHz.
IBM released the 970MP in the 3rd quarter of 2005, which is code-named "Antares". The PowerPC 970MP is a dual-core processor that was initially released with a top speed of 2.5 GHz. This chip was initially produced at the 90nm process. Additionally, the 970MP doubled the L2 cache on each core from 512 KB to 1 MB when compared with the 970FX.