Introduction
I used to write bi-weekly blog posts in a series called Glenn’s Tech Insights. Since I’m not doing that any longer, I will continue to write about HW news on a regular basis here. Recently, there has been a lot of news about several new and upcoming desktop processor families.
Intel 10th Generation Desktop CPUs (Comet Lake-S)
On May 20, 2020, Intel released the Comet Lake-S line of processors. I previously wrote about the new improvements and the pros and cons of these processors here.
Now, the initial round of reviews have been released. These reviews are decidedly mixed. The flagship 10C/20T Core i9-10900K does very well on gaming, and does better on productivity than the previous 8C/16T Core i9-9900K. Unfortunately, it does not do as well as the less expensive AMD Ryzen 9 3900X on most productivity tasks. Power usage and temperatures are not as bad as was initially feared.
The 8C/16T Intel Core i7-10700K is seen as a less expensive replacement for the previous 8C/16T Core i9-9900K. We have similar situation for the new 6C/12T Core i5-10600K compared to the older 6C/6T Core i5-9600K.
Intel has maintained their slight lead in gaming performance (which is small enough that you might not notice) compared to AMD. The AMD Ryzen 9 3900X is simply more well-rounded and versatile, for less money than a Core i9-10900K.
Here are some of the initial reviews:
- Intel i5-10600K vs AMD Ryzen 3600X & 3700X! Review, Overclocking & Benchmarks
- Intel Core i9-10900K Review, Gaming & Application Benchmarks
- Sorry Intel…Its Too Late 😢 i9-10900K & i5-10600K Review & Benchmarks
- Intel Core i7-10700K vs. AMD Ryzen 7 3700X & R9 3900X
AMD Ryzen 3 3100 and 3300X
On May 6, 2020, the review embargo for the new Ryzen 3 3100 and Ryzen 3 3300X processors expired. As a result, we found out more about the architectural differences between the two. We also saw a plethora of reviews.
The main difference is that the $120 Ryzen 3 3300X has all four cores on the same CCX instead of being split across two CCXs. This reduces latency and improves performance significantly. This makes the Ryzen 3 3300X well worth the extra $20 compared to the Ryzen 3 3100.
The TDLR is that these are great budget gaming CPUs. It is wonderful to have lots of choices!
I previously wrote about these processors here.
So far, I have not seen any of these processors available for sale. That is ok, since I would rather wait for the new budget AMD B550 chipset motherboards that should show up in June.
Here are some of the initial reviews:
- AMD Ryzen 3 3300X Review – The Magic of One CCX
- AMD Ryzen 3 3300X vs. 3100 CPU Review: An R3 is Enough for Gaming & Clock-for-Clock
- Ryzen 3 3100 & 3300X Review, $100-$120 3rd gen Ryzen CPUs
- AMD Ryzen 3 Now Launching the Unbelievable 3100 & 3300X
AMD Matisse Refresh
Update: Just as I was about to publish this, Hassan Mujtaba broke a story claiming that AMD will have three new SKUs as a part of this “Matisse Refresh”. These would be the Ryzen 5 3600XT, Ryzen 7 3800XT, and Ryzen 9 3900XT. These are due to be announced on June 16, and released on July 7.
There have been a series of rumors about a couple of new Zen 2, Ryzen 7 SKUs that AMD may release this summer. The two SKUs are the Ryzen 7 3750X and the Ryzen 7 3850X. Both of these would be 8C/16T parts that would be very similar to the existing Ryzen 7 3700X and Ryzen 3800X parts.
The main difference is probably a 100-200 MHz increase in their base and boost clock speeds. This speed increase is likely possible due to increased yields and better silicon quality as the TSMC 7nm FinFet process has matured. These two SKUs might also have slightly higher TDP ratings.
According to the rumors, they might be announced on June 16, and released on July 7. This makes sense as an easy competitive response to the new Intel Comet Lake desktop processors.
- MATISSE 2 IS ACTUALLY REAL, 3750X AND 3850X TO LAUNCH IN JULY
- AMD Readies 3rd Gen Ryzen “Matisse Refresh” Ryzen 7 3850X and 3750X Processors
- AMD Zen 3+ APU, Matisse 2, Zen 4 Leaks | Zen and the Art of Microarchitecture Maintenance
Final Words
This is a great time to be a hardware enthusiast. There are so many new releases and improvements in the pipeline. The competition between Intel and AMD drives innovation at a faster pace, which benefits everyone.
The release of Intel Comet Lake-S is met by the probable release of AMD’s “Matisse Refresh” Zen 2 CPUs. These will hold the line for AMD until Zen 3 is released later this year. After that, the next response form Intel will be Rocket Lake.
If you find this sort of content interesting, please let me know in the comments. Thanks for reading!