Intel Core i9: Everything we know about Intel's hyper charged PC processor
Intel's Core i9 is possibly the most powerful family of consumer PC chips ever made.
Intel’s Core i9 processor is what happens when Intel begins to worry that it might not have the baddest chip on the block. If you’re desperate to know how it performs against AMD’s Threadripper, you’re in luck—as of Sept. 25, we’ve tested the 18-core Core i9-7980X and the 16-core Core i9-7960XE!
Read on for the speeds, feeds, prices, and reviews of the new Core i9 chips, as well as all the details we have on the underlying technologies. In addition to the new Core i9 specs, we now know how the Core i9 performs as part of our review, and the price and availability of X299 motherboards. We’ll update this post with new information and testing as we receive it.
The latest news
We put the both the 18-core Core i9-7980X and 16-core Core i9-7960X to the test, and the results are in: The i9-7980X is top dog, unquestionably. Yes, AMD Ryzen Threadripper fans can be content that those chips cost about $1,000 less, but in both multiple- and single-threaded performance, the i9-7980X comes out on top.
One point the review emphasized is to consider to what purpose you’re putting these chips. The Core i9’s massive core count makes it ideal for “multitasking” ( such as playing, recording, and streaming a game) or content creation. Otherwise, Threadripper offers a much more competitive solution.
And, if you haven’t guessed it already, that rounds out the Core i9 product family; all are now currently shipping. That includes the Core i9-7920X, which was slightly delayed. Now, however, you can buy the Core i9-7920X at amezone.comfor $1304.96—about $200 or so over the shipping price.
Basic specs: Clock speed, core count, prices, ship date, power
The processor specs that matter most concern performance. The raw clock speed determines how fast any one thread can be acted upon, while the core and thread counts control how many threads or tasks can be calculated in parallel. The Core i9 series excels in these metrics. But you’ll pay a hefty premium for that talent.
Finally, Intel has announced all of the clock speeds of the Core i9 family. They’re all unlocked, too—ready and waiting to be overclocked. Here’s a summary of the core counts and prices of the Core i9 chips we do know, including clock speeds where available.
Core i9 Extreme Edition:
- Core i9-7980XE: (2.6GHz, 4.4GHz burst) 18 cores/36 threads, $1,999
Core i9:
- Core i9-7960X: (2.8GHz, 4.4GHz burst) 16 cores/32 threads, $1,699
- Core i9-7940X: (3.1GHz, 4.4GHz burst) 14 cores/28 threads, $1,399
- Core i9-7920X: (3.1GHz, 4.4GHz burst) 12 cores/24 threads, $1,199
- Core i9-7900X: (3.3GHz, 4.5GHz burst) 10 cores/20 threads, $999
Core i7:
- Core i7 7820X (3.6GHz, 4.5GHz burst), 8 cores/16 threads, $599
- Core i7-7800X (3.5GHz, 4.0GHz burst), 6 cores/12 threads, $389
- Core i7-7740X (4.3GHz, 4.5GHz burst), 4 cores/8 threads, $339
Core i5:
- Core i5-7640X (4.0GHz, 4.2GHz burst), 4 cores, 4 threads, $242
As expensive as they are, however, the Core i9s are popular chips. The Core i9-7940X, i9-7960X and i9-7980XE are all listed as backordered or out of stock at popular retailer Newegg. (According to Newegg, the retailer will receive more stock of the Core i9-7940X sometime between Oct. 4 and Oct. 10. As for the 7960X and 7980XE, there's no word.) It looks like the 12-core 7920X is the fastest, widely-available Core i9 at the moment.
You were able to preorder the Core i7 X-series chips and the 10-core Core i9-7900X the week of June 20. The 12-core Core i9-7920X ships August 28 while the 14-, 16-, and 18-core Core i9 chips shipped on September 25.
The new chips will consume 112W or 140W (depending on the chip), requiring a liquid-cooling solution. Intel has said there will be a 165W chip, too, but waited until early August to reveal it—or them, as it turns out. Intel will have three 165-watt chips: the i9-7980XE, the i9-7960X, and the i9-7940X. We tested the Core i9’s power consumption deep within our Core i9 review, and found that it consumes more power than the Threadripper, incidentally.
More importantly, all of the Core i9 chps use a new Socket R4, a 2,066-pin LGA socket that will require a brand-new motherboard. Intel’s Core i9 family is not backward-compatible with existing Skylake or Kaby Lake motherboards.
Frequently asked questions
What is Core i9?
On May 30 at Computex, Intel formally announced the Core i9 high-end chips for PC enthusiasts. At the high end, it’s quite simple: The Core i9 family consists of what’s known as the Skylake-X architecture, with processors that include 10, 12, 14, and 16 cores.
From there, it becomes a bit complicated. For some reason, Intel decided that the 8-core and 6-core Skylake-X chips aren’t worthy enough, so they carry the Core i7 name. They share some common architectural features with the “true” Core i9 chips, though, so we’ve included them. The same goes for a second family of chips, known as Kaby Lake-X—basically the same seventh-generation CPUs you’ve seen on laptops and desktops for more than a year, but that also connect to the same X299 chipset as the Skylake-X chips do. The two Kaby Lake-X chips will be quad-core only parts.
Colloquially, you may also see these chips referred to as the Skylake-X family, the X-series of chips, or by their code name, “Basin Falls.”
When can I get Core i9?
Preorders for the Core i7 X-series chips and the 10-core Core i9 7900X began the week of June 20. The 12-core Core i9-7920X launches Aug. 28 while the 14-, 16-, and 18-core Core i9 chips shipped on Sept. 25. They’re supposedly all available, though -- as noted above -- the latter three are listed as "backordered" or "out of stock" on many sites. As of late September, it appears that the 7920X is the fastest, widely-available Core i9 at the moment.
Who should buy Core i9?
As you might guess from the prices, these chips aren’t for everyone. You don’t remotely need 18 cores and 36 threads unless you’re doing resource-intensive multitasking, such as video or gaming, or content creation.
How much will Core i9 cost?
The least-expensive Core i9 chip will be the Core i5-7640X, at $242. The Core i7 chips will range from $339 to $599. The Core i9 chips will be priced from $999 to $1699. The most expensive will be the Extreme Edition (Core i9-7980XE) for $1,999. Surprisingly, some of the highest-performance chips are in short supply, driving up their price even higher. As of late September, the
What sort of integrated graphics does the Core i9 have?
None. Zippo. Zilch. We’ve been told the chips physically have no integrated graphics on on the die at all.
Where does Core i9 fit into the Intel Core family?
Core i9 is Intel’s fifth PC processor family, starting with the Core m and moving up through the traditional Core i3, i5, and i7 chips to Core i9. As the numerical sequencing suggests, Core i9 represents Intel’s most prestigious chip family, offering the best performance at the highest price.
It’s not exactly clear what makes a chip a Core i9. The lowest-end Core i9-7900X, for example, shares the same amount of cores as the previous 10-core Core i7-6950X. Still, if you are looking to buy or build today and want the fastest Intel has to offer, Core i9 is probably the easiest way to tell.
How does Core i9 relate to Broadwell-E?
Core i9 succeeds Broadwell-E as Intel’s supreme, enthusiast desktop chip family.
At the top of the heap sits Core i9 Extreme Edition, part of the Core i9 family, but a supercharged subset of its own. Right now, it’s just a single chip: the Core i9 Extreme Edition i9-7980XE.
Will I need a new motherboard for Core i9?
Yes. All Core i9 CPUs will use a new Socket R4, a 2,066-pin LGA socket that will require a brand-new motherboard. Intel’s Core i9 family is not backward-compatible with existing Skylake or Kaby Lake motherboards. Right now, there is only one chipset that supports the Core i9: the X299 chipset and associated motherboards.
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