Intel doesn’t need cheap processors to fight AMD, what it needs is groundbreaking

Not long ago, AMD launched a series of new CPUs, including the Ryzen 9 3950X, Threadripper 3970X and 3960X – all with great and excellent improvements over previous generations. On the Intel side, they have also released high-end Core i9-10980XE 18-core CPUs for desktop; Unfortunately for Intel, this chip is not very well received.

Intel Core i9-10980XE

It is not difficult to find articles that disparage Intel on the Internet over time. However, many of these articles do not mention or discuss Intel’s huge price cuts for Cascade Lake-X processors to confront AMD’s Ryzen 9 3950X 16-core. This discount allows the company to pave the way into the high-end desktop market. Intel has lost the leading position; Threadripper 3960X is a better CPU on almost every aspect. But in fact, AMD’s new Threadripper CPUs are also much more expensive.

Threadripper days bring better value at a much lower price than far-fetched Intel high-end processors (2nd generation products like Threadripper 2950X are still on sale, but they’re significantly slower in play games and some other tests). This CPU series is leading the way in desktop performance. But, this also opens up a vacant mineral in the market where Intel – with limited resources – has achieved certain success. The Core i9-10980XE CPU, though still more expensive than the Ryzen 3950X, gives noticeably higher performance in some tests, especially when you overclock it. These tests include a few game titles. There are also problems with the number of PCI-E lanes. While AMD’s X570 platform gives more bandwidth on each device with support for PCI-E 4.0, it only has a limited number of PCI-E lanes to use.

AMD Threadripper 3970X

Intel’s X299 platform and AMD’s TRX40 have a much higher number of PCI-E lanes, allowing customers to use a range of PCI-E devices. For gamers or ordinary PC users, this is not very attractive, but for content creators, it is a must-have condition. Motherboard prices are similar, at least between the X570 and X299. If you study carefully, you will realize that the Core i9-10980XE does not really compete directly with the Ryzen 9 3950X. Intel’s sharp price cuts are intended to help them move a bit more in terms of price and performance, and for some, this chip will be the best option, especially if you can’t afford the costs. AMD’s new Threadripper CPU.

This does not mean that all criticisms for Intel are wrong. The fact that this company has to cut prices sharply to compete is a sad reality. Intel lacks the innovations that have made their name, even when Cascade Lake-X is a viable option for a certain group of customers.

The problem here is that over the three consecutive generations of high-end 18-core desktop CPUs, the improvements Intel has made are few, if not almost none. Let’s go back to 2014 when Intel launched the Haswell-E processor. The most advanced of this series is the Core i7-5960X, an octa-core CPU with remarkable power and powerful improvements compared to the previous generation. Next came the 2016 Core i7-6950X, with the multiplier increasing to 10 and the manufacturing process down from 22nm to 14nm.

In 2017, Intel launched Skylake-X, one of the most improved processors on Intel’s high-end desktop platform. Its multiplier increased from 10 to 18 and although the manufacturing process is still at 14nm, the Skylake-X architecture is a major change. As many of you know, AMD is the one who inspired Intel to make this move; 2017 was also the year AMD launched Threadripper.

In just three generations, Intel has increased the number of CPU cores from 8 to 18, introduced a major architectural change for the Skylake-X series, and reduced the manufacturing process from 22nm to 14nm. Remember, Intel has: reduced the production process, significantly redesigned the architecture, and increased the multiplier. How many of them have they done with the last 3 generations of CPUs? None of them. The core has leveled off, the process is still 14nm, and no significant architectural improvements have been made since the Skylake-X era.

Did you realize why Intel was criticized? Of course, there is a lot of criticism about Cascade Lake-X, when in fact, thanks to a few sharp price cuts, this CPU series was able to occupy a part of the market between the Ryzen 3rd generation product line. and AMD’s Threadripper. But what we want to see from Intel is improvement. That is why many reviewers took the opportunity of Cascade Lake-X to launch their views, and in terms of improvements, they were completely accurate. The desktop microprocessor market is currently at a sensitive time, with AMD preparing to take over to gain more market share in 2020, and this time, it is likely that they will be able to oust Intel in every way. , put Intel in a corner, “dilemma”, can only continue to reduce product prices to stand. Lower prices are good, of course, but launching faster, more power-efficient, and more powerful processors is definitely better.

Reference: Forbes