Intel introduces 9th Gen Intel Core desktop processors

Intel has finally officially confirmed the existence of the Core i9-9900K, its first eight-core/16-thread mainstream CPU that will be the flagship part of the new 9th Gen Intel Core mainstream desktop range.

Intel proudly describes the Core i9-9900K as ‘the world’s best gaming processor’. It makes for the first time that Intel has a Core i9 SKU as part of its mainstream desktop offering. The new 95W TDP CPUs, which also include the eight-core/eight-thread Core i7-9700K (note the lack of Hyper-Threading on a Core i7 part), and the six-core/six-thread Core i5-9600K, should become available today for pre-order in systems from Intel’s various partners, prior to full availability on October 19th, which is also when our reviews of the new parts will go live.

The Core i9 part is expected to hit 5GHz out of the box and will use a new solder-based thermal interface material (TIM) between the dies and the heat spreader in order to boost cooling and hopefully overclocking performance, but as far as we know this is the only part of the new family to do so. The new parts use the same Coffee Lake architecture as the 8th Gen Intel Core parts and the same 14nm++ process. Intel is launching a new chipset with these parts - Z390 - but has confirmed that all the news parts are fully compatible with existing 300-series chipsets via the LGA 1151 socket.

To celebrate the launch, Intel will be giving away nine VIP tickets to various gaming events as well as thousands of digital codes for games. This will all start on November 5th, and details can be found at core9.intel.com.

We are currently at a launch event for this processor, and will share further details if and when we can.