Intel Announces 18-Core i9 Extreme Edition CPU

This year, at Computex, Asus wasn’t the only company showing off their latest pride and joy. Intel announced also their first desktop CPU with not 10, but 18 cores, the i9 Extreme Edition CPU #hardwaremagic

If the name sounds like it should belong to a fast, furious, racing car, it’s probably because it could have. The truth is the newes processor from Intel is fast, performant, cutting edge and carries enough power to satisfy the most exigent consumer. The entire Core X-series is impressive, but the jewel in the crown is definitely the i9-7980XE.

This processor with a hard-to-remember name is what you need if,

a. you love to invest in your toys and want the best of everything

or b. you tackle some of the most complex, power-draining tasks on Earth.

The massive 18-core count and 36 threads will probably help it live up to your expectations, especially since it’s the first Intel chip for consumers that offers over a teraflop worth of computing power. Of course, you can get one with 10,12,14 or 16 cores if this one is a bit out of your budget; Intel will be selling it in the coming weeks for $1,999. The deca-core CPU for example, the i9-7900X, is going to retail for half the price, $999.

All of the i9 chip variants have base clock speeds of 3.3GHz but can go for 4.3GHz dual-core speeds with Turbo Boost 2.0 and 4.5GHz with Turbo Boost 3.0. Such intense core design is bound to lead to heat issues, so Intel counteracted this potential disaster with its own cooling solution. This is suitable for the new chips as well as previous models.

Besides the i9, the Intel Core X-series boasts a quad-core i5-7640X and i7 models with 4, 6 and 8 cores.