Just received my core i5 3470, is thermal paste pre applied ?

That's correct.

I wouldn't, but it would probably work.

The way it is on there now is pretty much completely opposite of how every article out there tells you to apply it (one blob in the center that flattens to sort of a pancake shape covering most of the CPU).

That being said, one of the biggest things to avoid is to have air pockets (holes in the center of the pancake shape) and I guess the 3 stripe method does avoid that by leaving space to either side for air to vent out.

The biggest thing you would run into is that a lot of the processor would not be touching paste. Usually maybe 25% of it isn't, but with the 3 stripe setup you have on there its more like 75%.

It sounds kinda dangerous to me, that is why I got rid of it and applied my own when I got one like that, but it may work well enough. You could try it and find out.

A program like HWMonitor from CPUID can tell you very quickly how well it is working or not working.

Ok this might sound insanely noobish but I never actually installed a stock intel heatsink before. Actually never installed an intel processor at all  

I'm done with installing the heatsink the way I thought it was supposed to be done, but the whole thing seems insanely cheap and fragile to me. I mean the heatsink actually moves when I gently push it around. These plastic toolless screws do not seem like it's correctly holding it in place. Is this normal ? I'm actually scared of turning it on and risk damaging the CPU.

Edit : Wow nevermind that I didn't correctly push the last screw... I got ostheoporosis (or whatever it is called in english) and my hands have the Curse of Weakness. It's all good now

The Intel push pins are horrible, its not just you being worried.

However, they usually work well enough even though they always feel cheap and fragile.

I am using the push pins on my computer (begrudgingly) and my processor still rarely ever passes 40c. That isn't on stock paste, but it is with the stock heat sink connected with the push pins the regular way.

I was really worried when I started mine up the first time too, because even when I looked at the back of the motherboard it was clear that the push pins weren't at equal depths and one of them didn't even appear to go in correctly at all.

However, it all functions according to plan that way in my PC and for pretty much everybody else too.

The CPU should shut itself off really quickly if its not on there right.

Generally speaking, you have to do something colossally stupid to blow up a newer CPU. They pretty much all have sensors that will shut the processor completely off if it notices upward spiraling temperatures.

There is a video on the internet where this idiot took a really old processor and didn't even attach the heat sink properly so that he could start gaming and then pull the heat sink off in the middle of the game. When he did it literally blew a hole in the top of the processor after a loud pop.

Even if you were to do something equally stupid today, its not supposed to break, it is supposed to detect it within milliseconds and shut itself down to prevent such eventualities.

Whether it actually does that is up for debate. I haven't personally tested it and I don't intend to test it with my 3570k either. I don't have that kind of money to waste.

I would, however, love to hear from someone with enough money that they don't care about paying another $200 if it does break and who has tried it.

In short, your concerns are valid, but its probably like its supposed to be and if it isn't there probably won't be any damage.

- Edit - A video kinda sorta like what I meant about what not to do. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssL1DA_K0sI

- Edit 2 - The AMD Duron chip in that video was released in 2000. Chips available in 2012 are, again, not supposed to have this happen.

To answer your question about shutting down...yes, yes they do   hahaha I once cleaned my old pc (when I was still stupid and uninformed) and I didnt replace the thermal paste. I got the pc to boot and then when I start a game it makes a very loud beeping noise and then it shuts down. It was an Intel Core 2 Duo and it still works fine!!  

Glad to hear that the protection is working like it is supposed to. Thx Bigbasedrum for vouching for it.

Do you seriously imply that Intel provide a HSF and thermal paste that's totally inadequate for their processors? I normally use the stock HSF and I never had issues like you described. As soon as the CPU gets warm enough, the thermal paste expands. I know because I had to remove a few processors when replacing the motherboard (new AS5 thermal paste), the processor for an upgrade or installing a beteer HSF.

What I am implying is that Intel wants absolutely huge gross margins, more than 80%, and in an effort to achieve that they are incentivized not to go above and beyond in the extra products they include with the processor.

I am not saying it is totally inadequate, more like that it is the bare minimum.

The OP can't overclock his i5 3470 CPU; therefore the Intel thermal paste is adequate. This article certainly is both interesting and amusing: http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Thermal-Compound...

It is probably not going to be hard for me to find 100 threads saying to replace it and for you to find 100 threads saying what it comes with is good enough to keep the temps south of the 105c max.

What I am more interested in is whether the OP can reduce temperatures 5 - 10c by applying AS5 in the normal way people apply it (one drop in the center). That, btw, being the way that HS tested all those pastes as well.

I can't answer for the OP, but in my experience, I found little difference on a non-overclocked processor.