We learned that AMD's strategy is to attack Intel's Core 2 dual-core generation with its Phenom and Athlon quad and three-core versions. AMD Quad cores Phenom II 940 at 3GHz today sells for $235, while Phenom II 920 at 2.8GHz sells for $195 with the latest discount.

AMD soon to launch AM3 quad and triple-core CPUs will sell for less than that and they will sink to close to $150. Intel currently wants $190 for Core 2 duo E8500 3.16GHz and 3.33GHz clocked Core 2 Duo E8600 sells for $270 which is more than AMD wants for any of its new Phenom II quads.

The question is how low Intel can go with its Core 2 prices as AMD is offering similar or same clocked quad-cores for almost the same money and at least in some cases, quad-core will pay off. If we look in our crystal ball we believe than AMD will lead Intel to even bigger losses in 2009, as it's pricing is much less than many expected.