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Intel unveils monster 18-core Core i9: 'First teraflop-speed' consumer PC chip

As well as the Core i9, Intel has lifted the lid on the whole new Core X-series of high-performance CPUs.
Written by Liam Tung, Contributing Writer
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Intel has unveiled its Core-X series CPU and the Core i9 Extreme Edition.

Image: Intel

Intel has introduced its new Core X high-performance desktop chips, led by the Core i9-7980XE, its first 18-core processor.

Compared with Intel's four-core, seventh-generation Core i5 and Core i7 processors for mainstream users, the Core X-series is aimed at gamers who want to live-stream, and users running applications such as VR video editing, 3D modeling, and special-effects creation.

The top end of the series is for anyone who feels the need for extreme performance on the desktop and is willing to pay for it.

The Core X-series is spearheaded by the $1,999 Core i9 Extreme Edition processor, the i9-7980XE, which Intel boasts is the first consumer desktop CPU with teraflop performance and 18 cores.

Below the Core i9 Extreme Edition, the Core i9 X-Series CPUs scale down to the 10-core i9-7920X for $999. That price is significantly less than Intel's 10-core CPU offering from last year, the $1,650 i7-6590X. The 10-core Core i9 chip has a base clock speed of 3.3GHz.

Other Core i9 processors include the 16-, 14-, and 12-core variants, which will cost $1,699, $1,399, and $1,119 respectively.

The Core X-series also features three Core i7 chips in eight-, six-, and four-core variants, which cost $599, $389, and 339 respectively, and the entry-level four-core Core i5 at $242.

As Intel notes, the new Core X-series CPUs are based on Intel's Sky Lake processors, while the four-core CPU is based on Kaby Lake design. All the chips are designed to work with its new X299 chipset.

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Intel says the i9-7980XE is the first consumer desktop CPU with teraflop performance and 18 cores.

Image: Intel

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