Intel's Six-core i7-990X Extreme Is Its Fastest Desktop Chip Yet
Intel started shipping the six-core Core i7-990X Extreme Edition processor on Monday, calling it the fastest Intel desktop processor ever. The processor runs at a clock speed of 3.46GHz and has overclocking features that allow users to manually crank up the speed, Intel said. The chip includes 12MB of cache and draws 130 watts of power.
The processor's overclocking features could appeal to hardcore gamers, 3D artists and media enthusiasts, Intel said in a blog entry on Monday. In addition to manual overclocking, the chip includes a feature called Turbo Boost, which can ratchet up the clock speed to as high as 3.73 GHz, depending on the power drawn and the performance demanded by an application.
The Core i7-990X Extreme is Intel's top-of-the-line desktop processor. Intel and rival Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) routinely up the ante in desktop chip performance in order to gain the performance crown.
The chip is based on the old Westmere architecture (32nm fabrication process) and is not affected by Intel's recent announcement of a chipset flaw. The chipset issue is related only to chips based on Intel's latest microarchitecture, called Sandy Bridge (which uses Intel P67/H67 motherboard chipsets).
The 990X uses the Intel X58 motherboard chipset, and supports triple-channel DDR3 memory. HyperThreading (HT) is present as expected, allowing for 12 simultaneous threads on the 6 cores available.
Pricing for the Core i7-990X was not immediately available. However, the online retailer NewEgg has listed the Intel Core i7 990X at US$ 1049. That was the price at which Intel's previous flagship consumer processor, the Core i7 980X sold, before being marked down to US$ 999. The speed difference in absolute terms is very little (133 MHz, meaning a multiplier increase of one), from 3.33 GHz for the 980X as against 3.46 GHz for the 990X processor.
Intel started shipping the six-core Core i7-990X Extreme Edition processor on Monday, calling it the fastest Intel desktop processor ever. The processor runs at a clock speed of 3.46GHz and has overclocking features that allow users to manually crank up the speed, Intel said. The chip includes 12MB of cache and draws 130 watts of power.
The processor's overclocking features could appeal to hardcore gamers, 3D artists and media enthusiasts, Intel said in a blog entry on Monday. In addition to manual overclocking, the chip includes a feature called Turbo Boost, which can ratchet up the clock speed to as high as 3.73 GHz, depending on the power drawn and the performance demanded by an application.
The Core i7-990X Extreme is Intel's top-of-the-line desktop processor. Intel and rival Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) routinely up the ante in desktop chip performance in order to gain the performance crown.
The chip is based on the old Westmere architecture (32nm fabrication process) and is not affected by Intel's recent announcement of a chipset flaw. The chipset issue is related only to chips based on Intel's latest microarchitecture, called Sandy Bridge (which uses Intel P67/H67 motherboard chipsets).
The 990X uses the Intel X58 motherboard chipset, and supports triple-channel DDR3 memory. HyperThreading (HT) is present as expected, allowing for 12 simultaneous threads on the 6 cores available.
Pricing for the Core i7-990X was not immediately available. However, the online retailer NewEgg has listed the Intel Core i7 990X at US$ 1049. That was the price at which Intel's previous flagship consumer processor, the Core i7 980X sold, before being marked down to US$ 999. The speed difference in absolute terms is very little (133 MHz, meaning a multiplier increase of one), from 3.33 GHz for the 980X as against 3.46 GHz for the 990X processor.
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