AMD began shipping its first 6-core, 45 nm Opteron server CPUs with "Istanbul" architecture, since last month only, with the top-of-the-line 2.6 GHz, 4- and 8-way 8435 SE selling for $2,649 in 1,000-unit quantities ("trays"). Perhaps ahead of schedule, AMD cut the tape for a 2.8 GHz 4- and 8-way model 8439 SE model that one-ups its own June release. Its tray price: $2,649. And while a new entry on the high end usually triggers a price drop for existing models, it may yet be too soon for AMD to drop the price of the 2.6 GHz model below its June price. In an interview, AMD's Steve Demski said that won't be much of a problem, since in this economy and with the current state of data center architecture, high wattage and higher performance are less of a factor than ever before.