Socket 4 is a CPU socket introduced by Intel in 1993 for its Pentium chips. It uses a pin grid array and plastic material, and has a ZIF feature. Socket 4 was designed for the Pentium microarchitecture and operates in a 5V range. It was succeeded by Socket 5 and Socket 7, which have more pin holes and lower operating voltage.
Socket 4 is a central processing unit (CPU) socket that semiconductor manufacturer Intel Corporation introduced in 1993 for its Intel Pentium computer chips. This device is responsible for connecting the CPU to the motherboard of a personal computer (PC) for data transmission. It also provides physical support so that the processor does not suffer damage. Socket 4 was the first Intel Pentium CPU socket, as well as one of the first CPU sockets using the pin grid array (PGA) form factor.
PGA refers to the ordered grid arrangement of the 4 pin holes of Socket 237. They are used to connect the CPU via its pins. The pin contacts are arranged in four rows, which join together on Socket 4’s square substrate. It uses a PGA variant called plastic pin grid array (PPGA), which is the plastic material used to make the socket. It has a zero insertion force (ZIF) feature to ensure that a user can remove or insert the CPU without using any force.
The predecessors of Socket 4, introduced between 1989 and 1991, were Socket 1, Socket 2 and Socket 3, which contain 169, 238 and 237 pin holes respectively. They were all made for the Intel 80486 microprocessor. Also known as the i486 and Intel486, the 80486 gets its name from its fourth-generation status in the lifespan of the 16-bit 8086-bit chip, or iAPX86, which first appeared at the end from the 1970s.
That all changed, however, with the debut of Socket 4, as it was designed for Intel’s newest Pentium chip, which debuted on March 22, 1993. As the fifth production generation of the 8086 brand, the Pentium microarchitecture was codenamed P5, and represented a major boosted extension of this particular CPU family. In addition to increasing the pin holes, Intel increased the data rate range from 16 to 50 megahertz (MHz) to 50-66 MHz. Coincidentally, the 50 to 66 MHz range was the full spectrum of processing speed of the original generation of Pentium chips. Also, socket 4 operates in a 5 volt (V) range.
Socket 4, however, isn’t the only socket that supports the original Pentium, which Intel began phasing out with the Pentium II’s debut in 1997 and ended production two years later. By 1994, two more Pentium sockets had appeared, Socket 5 and Socket 7. These CPU sockets surpass Socket 4 with 320 and 321 pin holes, respectively. In addition, they require significantly lower operating voltage.
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