Core I7 Extreme Edition Laptop
Intel Core i7-920XMThe Intel Core i7 920XM Extreme Edition is the currently (2009) fastest laptop processor. It features 4 cores (quad core CPU) and Hyperthreading. Therefore, 8 threads can be worked on simultaneously.Because of the Turbo Mode, the CPU is clocked with up to 3.2 GHz and therefore fast for single core applications.The Core i7 9xx line has an integrated memory controller for DDR3 bars (1066 or 1333).Therefore, the memory performance is very good (compared to older CPUs with external memory controllers). Still this also leads to the higher TDP of the whole chip.Core architecture is still very similar to the one used in the Core 2 CPUs.The power consumption of up to 55 Watt (TDP) is quite high for a laptop CPU and because of the Turbo Mode, the power consumption should reach these high values.With a starting price of $1054 (when buying 1000 CPUs from Intel), the price tag is quite hefty. SeriesCodenameClarksfieldSeries: Core i7 Clarksfield2130 - 3333 MHz4 / 88 MB» Intel Core i7-920XM2000 - 3200 MHz4 / 88 MB1860 - 3200 MHz4 / 88 MB1730 - 3060 MHz4 / 88 MB1730 - 2930 MHz4 / 86 MB1600 - 2800 MHz4 / 86 MBClock Rate2000 - 3200 MHzFront Side Bus2500Level 1 Cache256 KBLevel 2 Cache1 MBLevel 3 Cache8 MBNumber of Cores / Threads4 / 8Max. Power Consumption (TDP = Thermal Design Power)55 WattTransistor Count774 MillionManufacturing Technology45 nmDie Size296 mm 2Max.
Temperature100 °CSocketRPGA989Features2.5 GT/s DMI, Virtualization Technology, Execute Disable Bit, Enahnced Speedstep Technology, Enhanced Halt State (C1E), 64, Turbo Boost, Hyper-Threading, Trusted Execution Technology64 Bit64 Bit supportStarting Price$1054 U.S.Announcement DateProduct Link (external)Benchmarks.
Intel Core I7
Core i7-990X: Fast Enough To Be The New King?Editor's Note: We have some extra hardware here in the lab, as you can see from the shot below. To be exact, I'm talking about a pair of Core i7-990X processors, a Core i7-980X, and a Core i7-950, and five Intel DX58SO2 motherboards (one to go with each CPU). We also have 50 cases of water. And we're giving it all away.
Read through and enjoy today's review and, on the last page, click the link to enter our random drawing.IntroductionThe Sandy Bridge architecture launch early last month had me scratching my head, wondering if there is still room in Intel’s desktop portfolio for Core i7-900-series processors. After all, why spend up to $1000 on a six-core stunner based on last-generation’s architecture if a quad-core CPU with significant per-clock improvements could come close around the $300 price point?Had Intel not run into problems with its H67 and P67 chipsets, there’s a fair chance that LGA 1155-based motherboards would already be flying off the shelves.
Enthusiasts would be buying Core i5-2500Ks en masse, overclocking them like mad, and seeing serious performance from a modestly-priced platform.But even then, Intel imposed some ghastly limitations on its Sandy Bridge-based platforms, and I simply don't approve of them. When you buy P67, you lose access to Quick Sync entirely. When you buy H67, you lose the ability to overclock a K-series SKU the way it was meant to be overclocked.
Either way you go, you lose some important piece of the Sandy Bridge-based feature set. I hate to get greedy, but that’s enough to make an enthusiast want to wait for Z68, isn’t it?Core i7-9 xx: A Family In Crisis?Back to the Core i7-900s.
Intel recently revamped the lineup, and it now consists of fewer models: Core i7-990X Extreme Edition, Core i7-970, and Core i7-960. Anything lower and you’re treading on Sandy Bridge territory. So, processors like Core i7-950 are going away.Of course, the company also had to reevaluate its pricing. With Core i7-2600K selling for $330, the value equation got flipped on its head.
The quad-core i7-960 dropped to $294 and the six-core i7-970 dropped to $583. Not surprisingly, Core i7-990X remains a $1000 unicorn.With the motherboard industry ramping production of LGA 1155-based platforms back up, is there still a reason to consider X58 Express and the Core i7-900 family?We’ve suggested that the chipset’s 36 lanes of second-gen PCI Express connectivity could be a reason for anyone with two, three, or four graphics cards. But then we showed that, using Nvidia’s NF200 bridge chip, even 16 lanes can demonstrate exceptional three-way SLI scaling ( ). So, it sounds like gamers can safely look elsewhere.Then, in our Sandy Bridge launch coverage ( ), I set up a clock-for-clock performance comparison and found that Intel’s newest CPUs run significantly faster at the same frequency—never mind the fact that they overclock extremely well, given a honed 32 nm manufacturing process.
There goes any possible way we could ever recommend a Bloomfield-based Core i7-960, -950, or -930.Retail Core i7-990X up frontWhat’s left? Core i7-970 and Core i7-990X—both Gulftown-based CPUs with six cores, manufactured at 32 nm. For a very specific, limited, and niche market most generally defined as workstations, there’s potential here for performance in excess of what the fastest Sandy Bridge-based chip (limited to four cores) can serve up.LGA 1366 interface around backAt $583, the -970 still feels overpriced. At $999, the -990X is even more so. But at least the -990X guarantees the fastest possible frequencies and sports an unlocked clock multiplier—a feature we so dearly coveted until AMD started arming gobs of its chips with the Black Edition moniker and Intel answered back with the K-series.As one vendor of very expensive motherboards told me recently, there are folks out there who’ll pay to own the fastest of anything, though.
Core I7 Extreme Edition Laptop Reviews
Our mission today is to figure out if the Core i7-990X is indeed the fastest processor out there. Or, does the Core i7-2600K oust it using a more efficient architecture?