This week on, “things we didn’t ask for…” comes the i9-9900KS. Now, is Intel providing a genuine improvement here? Or are you just paying to have an S at the end of your CPU model, like certain recent NVIDIA GPU releases? Let’s have a look.
This month, we’re bringing lots of small updates to our main build chart (and reaffirming some decisions from last month):
This is AMD’s biggest launch this year, and the number of sources covering this is huge! Alright, so where do we start? We are going to skip AMD’s GPUs for now (another update, soon) and look at the CPUs:
With the release of the highly-anticipated i9-9900k, gamers running Intel systems may still be wondering whether it’s worth upgrading to this pricey CPU, even over less-expensive options like the i7-9700k and the year-old i7-8700k. It can be tempting to default to the latest flagship model, but that may not be the best option for every builder.
Two new high-end, arguably-professional-grade Intel CPUs made their debut in late 2018: the i9-9900k and the i7-9800x, which come endowed with higher core counts, higher thread counts, and higher price tags than the previous generation of Intel CPUs.
They offer different features and are designed for compatibility with different chipsets. New Intel builders with hefty budgets and those looking to upgrade their high-end Intel workstation desktops will want to take a close look at these options.