Intel’s processor for desktops and laptops can be a jumble of codenames — Lynnfield, Nehalem or Clarkdale anyone? Add to that a rebranding initiative, unveiled three months ago, that split the same codenames across different chip families, and it can get downright confusing.
With Intel’s developer conference, aka IDF, which was held last Tuesday, we have created a guide to understanding Intel’s different consumer processors.
Intel currently has three main chip families: Core i7, Core i5 and Core 2. All are based on the 45nm technology that Intel started moving to in late 2007 and are available to consumers now. Eventually the company hopes to phase out the Core 2 line of products and introduce a new entry-level processor, Core i3.

read more here in this article by Priya Ganapati @ GadgetLab