Sandy Bridge-E CPUs Shipping Without Coolers?
Three upcoming Sandy Bridge-E (LGA2011) processors will ship without heatsinks and fans claims reports.
VR-Zone reports that Intel will ship its upcoming "Sandy Bridge-E" (LGA2011) Core i7 3820, 3930K and 3960X processors without a heatsink/fan combo in the box. The company will instead sell certified, compatible CPU coolers separately in a market that will already have readily available LGA2011-compatible solutions from big-name CPU cooler suppliers.
The report also suggests that users may want to look into liquid cooling with these three upcoming processors. Although the rated TDP is 130W, all three are reportedly consuming closer to 180W. Even more, Intel is supposedly telling power supply makers to verify that "their Sandy Bridge-E PSUs can cope with a peak current of 23A on the 12V2 rail and [be] based on an 80-percent or better efficiency rating of the PSU."
In addition to reports of the shipment and TDP rumors, pricing for the three CPUs supposedly leaked over the weekend. The Core i7 3960X high-end Extreme Edition processor will be focused on the enthusiast and priced at a meaty $999 USD, and will reportedly sport 6 Cores/ 12 Threads, 15 MB of L3 Cache and a stock clock speed of 3.33 GHz (3.9 GHz turbo). The Core i7 3930K will be priced at $583 and the "entry level" Core i7 3820 will be priced at $294.
Beyond these three, the next wave of Sandy Bridge-E processors is slated to arrive in the first half of 2012. These will include the Core i7 3980X Extreme Edition flagship CPU, the Core i7 2800K which will replace the i7 2600K, and two others that will replace the 3930K and 3830 processors. So far it's unknown if these processors will also ship without heatsinks and fans in the box.
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Kevin Parrish has over a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and product tester. His work focused on computer hardware, networking equipment, smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, and other internet-connected devices. His work has appeared in Tom's Hardware, Tom's Guide, Maximum PC, Digital Trends, Android Authority, How-To Geek, Lifewire, and others.
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mikem_90 Sounds like babyspeak... Sandy Bridgy!Reply
Though really, high end CPUs like this end up in mostly enthusiast hands, they'll have something planned or some other high end cooling system. -
runswindows95 Why does the Prescotts come to mind? Sorry, even if I had the money, I will not be buying a CPU that they actually suggest water cooling for. That is insane.Reply -
woffle Wonder how many chips are going to be fried and questions about computers shutting down during/just after POST cause of people not using a heatsink.Reply
Great for people that actually want to choose their own cooling though :) -
bejabbers I already have a water loop, so the fact that the chips come without a heatsink is fine for me. less waste.Reply -
woffleWonder how many chips are going to be fried and questions about computers shutting down during/just after POST cause of people not using a heatsink.Great for people that actually want to choose their own cooling thoughReply
The lower end ones will probably have a heatsink. A common Joe won't pay Top dollar for a box processor. Hopefully not, then they deserve it overheating :D -
ginnai The Intel train wreck just keeps piling up. Immediately after news of more "upgrade cards", Intel decides that spending $300 -1000 for a processor doesn't entitle its consumer to a $20 stock cooling solution... wow. Most people will dump the stock option, but Intel should offer something in exchange for their savings... maybe an upgrade card :PReply -
garage1217 So... First intel is gouging customers by selling scratch cards to unlock features of chips they already purchased. Now they are shipping chips without stock coolers, but guarantee they are not passing any savings onto the customer... no... instead they SELL you a heatsink lol Remind me again why I will never buy an intel chip no matter if they are faster than AMD or not? They are out to bend you over any way they can and make sure you have to buy a whole new mobo, chip and all every time you want to upgrade. And now want to gouge further! I bet next they will charge you for an intel sticker in the box. Just the intel way I guess!Reply
I can say I was impressed on the 1100T I picked up a month ago from newegg, the stock heapipe cooler was impressive for stock, kept idle temps around 28C and allowed a stable overclock of 3.8 / 4ghz-turbo. Verified stable after 3 hours of burn in with all cores at 100% and no errors! Hottest it got in my well vented case was 45C!! And it came with the chip and I did not have to pay extra! -
dragonsqrrl mikem_90Sounds like babyspeak... Sandy Bridgy!Though really, high end CPUs like this end up in mostly enthusiast hands, they'll have something planned or some other high end cooling system.I agree, to a certain extent. While I never used the stock cooler that came with my i7-950, I think it's still a good idea to include one in a retail package. Regardless of how crappy the heat dissipating performance may be, it's still rated to work fine at stock clocks, and it also gives the user the option to install a processor before investing in an after market cooling solution.Reply
You're no longer getting a fully functioning component out of the box. You're basically getting an OEM processor with full retail packaging, and unfortunately at full retail price.