If you're in the market for an Intel Core i5 processor and looking at the i5-10600K (our review here), you might have noticed that prices are a little steep on NewEgg and Amazon, with the e-tailers asking for $295 and $320, respectively. Both these prices are well above Intel's MSRP of $262, but worry not. You can now score a binned Intel Core i5-10600K that is guaranteed to overclock to 4.7 GHz on all cores at once for just $290. At stock settings, the chip boosts to 4.8 GHz, but Silicon Lottery also allows the 4.7 GHz model to hit 4.8 GHz on two cores, too.
Hold up, what?
Yes, you read that right. At this time, both NewEgg and Amazon are gauging the prices of Intel chips, which sucks for us consumers. But, Silicon Lottery is happily shipping out Intel Core i5-10600K's for $290 after testing their overclocking capabilities. Sure, that's still above MSRP, but you're getting a tested chip that likely runs better than one off Amazon or NewEgg for less money. Seems like a win-win if you ask me.
If you're wondering what a binned CPU is, it's a processor that has been through binning that determines if an individual CPU can perform at, or beyond, factory specifications, and then figuring out which chips are best. As no silicon is identical, some chips perform better than others.
In the spirit of that, the $290 4.7 GHz Core i5-10600K isn't the only option Silicon Lottery has for you. For $5 more, you'll get a chip that's guaranteed to hit 4.8 GHz on all cores and 4.9 GHz on two cores, and the list goes on from there.
Row 0 - Cell 0 | Percentage in Bin | Voltage Required (BIOS) | Price |
10600K @ 4.7 GHz | 100% | 1.350V | $290 |
10600K @ 4.8 GHz | 88% | 1.375V | $295 |
10600K @ 4.9 GHz | 73% | 1.400V | $300 |
10600K @ 5.0 GHz | Top 23% | 1.425V | $340 |
10600K @ 5.1 GHz | Top 8% | 1.450V | $420 |
As the binning stats above show, the good news here is that even if you score an i5-10600K from someone other than Silicon Lottery, unless you have bad luck Brian syndrome, you can hit 4.7 GHz on your 10600K (and 4.8 GHz on two cores), which is why Silicon Lottery is able to offer such a good price. If you want the best i5-10600K, on the other hand, you'll have yourself one of the top 8% of chips that's capable of running at 5.1 GHz on all cores at once (and 5.2 GHz on two cores) for $420.
Of course, you'll have to ensure adequate cooling, but Silicon Lottery can help with that too. For an added $50, they'll delid the chip so your cooler can make direct contact with the CPU's die, which will help it run up to eight degrees colder as tested by Der8auer.
If it were our money, we'd grab the i5-10600K that's tested to run at 4.9 GHz for $300, as that seems to be the sweet spot at this time.