News - Intel Core i7-4770K Haswell CPU benchmarked and priced

[HalloweenJack]

Haswell is the `tock` in intel cycle - so new architecture - but is it?

devbunny - do you realise the level of performance that AMD now ship with the on chip apu`s now?

[devBunny]

Am I the only one who is glad that it's not much of an improvement?

I'm sure you're not but I'm not glad. For anyone looking to boost their number crunching power, the question for this year has to be, in conjunction with my post just above, whether Haswell really is more worthwhile than another 3930 or whether to hang on for Ivy Bridge-E. If Haswell were, say, a 20-25% improvement then that question would be one third¹ easier. ;-)

(¹ or one half, depending on how you want to look at it ;-)

[devBunny]

devbunny - do you realise the level of performance that AMD now ship with the on chip apu`s now?

Do you mean for number crunching? I can't say that I'm impressed but, then again, I've only glanced at AMD's offerings since the huge hype let down called Bulldozer. Those glances have shown that 3930 still rules the (simulation) waves (excluding the silly money 3970 and Xeons).

[HalloweenJack]

Do you mean for number crunching? I can't say that I'm impressed but, then again, I've only glanced at AMD's offerings since the huge hype let down called Bulldozer. Those glances have shown that 3930 still rules the (simulation) waves (excluding the silly money 3970 and Xeons).

so the short version is:

no HJ i dont know.

the A10 5800k APU chips can play skyrim @ medium settings at 1680x1050 and get near 60fps.

edit:

and to make it very very clear - thats using the IGP not any addon card.

[MrJim]

Am I the only one who is glad that it's not much of an improvement?

It's about the same clock-for-clock performance difference as that between Sandybridge and Ivybridge...

[Turquoisetim]

What is the fastest ivy bridge CPU?

[kingpotnoodle]

Is there anyone? Of course. Anyone who wants power and doesn't need gaming graphics. I have a 3930 for the former and had to buy a pair of graphics cards for the spread of monitors. A 4770 will give you almost as much power and obviate the need for graphics cards, saving both money and expansion slots.

It's not all about gaming. I've lost count of how many times that needs to be said. ;o)

Mind you, if, as a non-gamer, the software that you use were geared towards GP computing then you might still bemoan what would then be the waste that is onboard graphics. :-)

If you are the very very tiny niche that wants high-end CPU power but basic graphics, no enhanced multi-monitor and no acceleration then just buy a £20 Geforce or Radeon card, plenty even in low profile size if you this powerful CPU in a small box.

Edit: but hangon, the GT3 is probably better than those... eh... whats the problem!

[Jay]

Maybe its just me but I still find my Q6600 is still good enough for most of my tasks. I do have a i7-2600 in my VMware box and for video encoding etc I can see a massive jump from the Q6600 but for everyday use and a bit of gaming my Q6600 is still going strong!

[davidcrofter]

Going to stick to my 2500k overclocked to 4.5Ghz. Seems to perform fine with everything I can currently throw at it.

Same here - does everything I need and offers superb overclocking. The integrated graphics are good enough for HD playback and as I don't game that's all I need. If I did game I wouldn't be relying on the inbuilt graphics ...

Intel aren't being pushed and if they think people are going to shell out on a new socket simply for 5% improvement I think they are ripping the proverbial.

[Willzzz]

Why do people feel upset if there isn't some huge improvement? This doesn't happen for most products and no-one complains. Cars or fridges don't get 20% better every year, yet no-one complains that new models keep getting released.

Some people just want a new PC, if you aren't in the market for a new PC why are you even bothered?

I'm going to buy a Haswell CPU, not because there is anything that great about it, but just because I want an upgrade in the next couple of months. If Haswell wasn't coming out I'd buy an Ivybridge, maybe it's only a modest improvement, but hey any improvement sounds good to me.

[devBunny]

For number crunching .. little or no-gaming

so the short version is:

no HJ i dont know.

the A10 5800k APU chips can play skyrim @ medium settings at 1680x1050 and get near 60fps.

edit:

and to make it very very clear - thats using the IGP not any addon card.

Lol. I gave you the long version to give you a second chance to realise what I said in my original post, which is that I'm not interested in gaming, so no, I don't know about AMD's latest APU performance. I couldn't give a rat's ass about it; 60fps in something that I never play is 60fps more than I need. ;o)

[devBunny]

If you are the very very tiny niche that wants high-end CPU power but basic graphics, no enhanced multi-monitor and no acceleration then just buy a £20 Geforce or Radeon card, plenty even in low profile size if you this powerful CPU in a small box.

Edit: but hangon, the GT3 is probably better than those... eh... whats the problem!

I have a multi-monitor setup but I don't know what you mean by "enhanced".

The idea is that there's no need to "just buy a £20 Geforce or Radeon card" if the integrated graphics is up to the job. Like I said, saving money and slots.

"the GT3 is probably better than those... eh... whats the problem!" - Indeed, there would be no problem if GT3 comes to the desktop but the Tom's article suggests that it's only for the mobile and possibly low end markets.

[kalniel]

Intel aren't being pushed and if they think people are going to shell out on a new socket simply for 5% improvement I think they are ripping the proverbial.

Willzzz hits the nail on the head. Why would you think they are aiming this at people who already have a relatively new computer? It's about people buying a new computer from scratch or upgrading from several years ago. The chip is probably cheaper for them to make than their previous chips, while also still being fast enough that they can claim the performance crown, so it's win-win for Intel really.

[zap117]

is 1155 really that different from 1150 that they need a totally new socket? (a 5 pin difference?) And hopefully this time they aren't using thermal paste under the IHS like they did with ivy bridge...

[stanonwheels]

Really wanted to wait until AMD could compete and start a good price war, but looks like I might have to just be poor for a bit and have one of these at intel cost instead.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Haswell is actually a bigger chip than IB,due to the larger cores and larger IGP. I suspect IB probably would be cheaper for Intel to make,unless Haswell has massively better yields.