Core i7 dated for November 17th, approximately priced

Intel will launch its Core i7 processors at a press event in San Francisco on the 17th of this month and already we have pricing estimates sliding off whispering lips. Distributors buying in bulk will pay a modest $284 for the 2.66GHz Core i7-920, $562 for the 2.93GHz 940, and $999 for the 3.2GHz Extreme 965 -- consumers will pay more of course, but we don't know exactly how much. Even the 920 squarely defeated the Core 2 Quad Q9650 in benchmarks, and we'll admit we had fun playing with the 965 over the weekend. As for those of you who haven't been so lucky, your chance to run up that credit card debt is fast approaching.

[Via TG Daily]

[Scotty Doo @ Nov 6th 2008 5:53AM]

These are sweet processors and a clear sign that AMD need to pull their finger out of their arse and get competitive again. A world without AMD or a decent competitor is a sad place...

[EdMercer @ Nov 6th 2008 6:24AM]

God forbid an entire processor generation without an answer from AMD. At least the Core i7 is the most AMD-ish processor Intel has ever engineered.

[Cash @ Nov 6th 2008 5:54AM]

Tempting, but I think I am going to wait for the LGA 1066 boards to come out before biting the nehalem bullet.Two sockets has never been a really good idea (just ask AMD) and all things being equal, the simpler of the two generally wins out

[Homer @ Nov 6th 2008 6:31AM]

Does this mean that no more core 2 duo/ quad in market after this chip is released?

[ant_onis @ Nov 6th 2008 7:15AM]

Yes.

[schmitty338 @ Nov 6th 2008 7:33AM]

actually....no.

[Shinigami @ Nov 6th 2008 6:38AM]

I was always wondering: why the hell these reviewers always test the CPUs with "low" settings. Does it mean that I will buy a better CPU to set lower settings? Or that I buy $500 CPU and $100 video card?
On the other hand if you max out settings, there will be little or no difference between the old CPUs and new CPUs in games.

Looks like nobody wants to talk about it though. Yeah, new CPUs are great for... uh... 3D designers, video editors ect but even Photoshop now knows how to use CUDA to speed up the process so video cards will still do the job faster (as long as they're supported by software).

New CPUs were made for servers, lets face it. Mainstream processors are planned for the second half of 2009. If you use your PC for games, I don't recommend Core i7.

[worldbfree4me @ Nov 6th 2008 9:40AM]

Core i7: 4-Way CrossFire, 3-way SLI, Paradise? : Tempered Expectations
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i7-gaming,2061.html

[zealeus @ Nov 6th 2008 10:53AM]

It's because using low settings forces the game to be CPU bound rather than GPU bound. Take a look at this benchmark:
http://enthusiast.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTU4MCwyLCxoZW50aHVzaWFzdA==
Notice how at the lower settings, the E8500 is maxed out and the fps doesn't change from 640x480 --> 1280x1024, while the other CPUs have a high FPS. This indicates that the game is CPU-bound at lower settings rather than GPU bound, hence they are better benchmarks. At higher settings, games can become both CPU and GPU bound, which doesn't help as much since tests are supposed to have one dependent variable rather than multiple as it makes it easier to pinpoint why things are happening.

[takato @ Nov 6th 2008 6:40AM]

am I the only one who thinks intel picked the 17th because "17" sorta looks like "i7"?

[Kizorblade @ Nov 6th 2008 6:51AM]

I didn't notice that...

You win the internet for today sir.

[Sparklemotion @ Nov 6th 2008 7:32AM]

actually, according the intel rep for my company, i7 is the 7th chip/core they've released

[Patriks7 @ Nov 6th 2008 9:12AM]

I'm sorry, but I don't see him talking about Intel choosing the name 'i7', but about the date they are released..

[JinNjuicE @ Nov 6th 2008 10:12AM]

i7 is made for Windows 7. lol

[6StringSamurai @ Nov 6th 2008 7:26AM]

So... Can I use this in the same motherboard as my Core 2 Quad?

[pball_inuyaha @ Nov 6th 2008 7:32AM]

NO! Please read one of the other articles. It states it's a new socket and require an insanely expensive motherboard. I don't remember any prices but I think they're hinting at 300+ who knows, I don't.

[6StringSamurai @ Nov 6th 2008 7:36AM]

Figured as much. That sucks.

[Terc @ Nov 6th 2008 7:40AM]

Durrr.....
No.

[6StringSamurai @ Nov 6th 2008 7:44AM]

Well, sorry. I'm not an expert in this kind of shit, I built my machine for high end recording and mixing. I just wanted to know if I needed a new motherboard for the new processor.

[WhyFi @ Nov 6th 2008 7:54AM]

Don't forget the new RAM (DDR3 - not inexpensive, either) in addition to the new MB and CPU - at this point, we're talking entry-level at about $700-ish, if you keep your case, GPU, PSU, etc, etc.

[Hotrod @ Nov 6th 2008 10:49AM]

I miss the days of when motherboards where cheaper than the processors we were trying to overclock.

[6StringSamurai @ Nov 6th 2008 7:58AM]

Thanks WhyFi. I'll wait and see if someone else takes the plunge and writes about it before dropping that kind of cash.

[Alan Partridge @ Nov 6th 2008 9:15AM]

Does this mean a price drop for Core 2?

[Precurse @ Nov 6th 2008 10:03AM]

Nah, I think that when the market gets flooded with more, better similar products, it causes the old items to increase in value/cost...

[rock99rock @ Nov 6th 2008 10:18AM]

So about $600 for the 940? Wtf? The E6600 was about $350 when it came out. It was the midrange when c2d was released. Thats a huge spike. Sucks.

[TheSpleen @ Nov 6th 2008 10:19AM]

You test with the video settings on low to make sure that the video card is not a bottleneck during testing, not because you expect people to use it that way in real life.

[TheSpleen @ Nov 6th 2008 10:24AM]

Was a reply to Shinigami

[mko @ Nov 6th 2008 10:31AM]

Damn I've just barely saved enough for a new Core 2 Quad PC (I have a P4 now) 1
You can never catch new tech can you?

[ran @ Nov 6th 2008 2:28PM]

I haven't built a computer in ages and I think I'm ready to.

[GaryZ @ Nov 6th 2008 3:46PM]

Great, time to buy in LGA775's for the cheap!

[doug @ Nov 6th 2008 3:56PM]

the top of the range chip is going to cost AUS$2500! dont know whats that in US$ but that a huge price

[zach @ Nov 7th 2008 2:12AM]

Prices of Triple Channel RAM, Core i7's and Motherboards in Australia are out on the PC Maniacs website: http://www.pcmaniacs.com.au/
Looks like my hopes of getting a new pc with a i7 965 are gonna remain just a dream.