Intel Cuts Prices of Core 2 Duo, Quad Chips
Late last month rumors did the rounds about Intel cutting processor prices, with the first round slated to occur on April 19. Good news folks, the rumors were true!
Intel this week confirmed suspected price cuts of several Core 2 Quad CPUs. The company also cut prices on a few of its Core 2 Duos. Price cuts aside, last month's rumors also fingered April 19 as the release date for the launch of the Core 2 Quad Q8400 (95W) and the Core 2 Quad Q8400S (65W), both clocked to 2.66 GHz and priced at $183 and $245, respectively. Also true.
Given that these rumors were true, it's safe to assume that the same reports were correct in saying Intel would launch more new processors at the end of May, including Celeron and Pentium Dual-Core parts, the Core 2 Duo E7600 and two new Core i7s: the 3.06 GHz 950 and the 3.33 GHz 975, priced at $562 and $999, respectively. We'll keep you posted on that one. Further price cuts are also scheduled for around this time in July.
Check out the April price cuts below:
| CPU | Old Price | New Price | Reduction |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 19 | |||
| Core 2 Quad Q8400 (2.66 GHz) | N/A | $183 | N/A |
| Core 2 Quad Q8400S (2.66 GHz) | N/A | $245 | N/A |
| Core 2 Quad Q9300 | $266 | $213 | 19.92% |
| Core 2 Quad Q9550S | $369 | $320 | 13.28% |
| Core 2 Quad Q9400S | $320 | $277 | 13.44% |
| Core 2 Quad Q8200S | $245 | $213 | 13.0% |
| Core 2 Duo SP9400 | $316 | $284 | 10.13% |
| Core 2 Duo SL9400 | $316 | $284 | 10.13% |
| Core 2 Duo SU9400 | $289 | $262 | 9.3% |
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deltatux Still expensive than AMD's offering. When I translate those figures to Canadian Dollar, my Phenom II 810 is still cheaper by about CAD$50 than the Q8200S.Reply
deltatux -
San Pedro Wonder how the Q8400 will perform over/clock. At sub $200 that might be a good upgrade option for me.Reply -
To repeat what everyone else said: They're just reducing their profit margins, anyone who was considering a Phenom II 940/955 will probably not be persuaded to go for an Intel instead.Reply
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Cache AMD fanboi's aside, this is just Intel culling it's own so that the I7 and related next-gen chips will take precedence. Is it directly to muddle with AMD's offerings? Sure, a little. But this really has nothing to do with AMD and everything with Intel trying to get customers to buy into their new lineups.Reply -
98silvz71 Too bad they aren't dropping the prices of worthy LGA 775 Upgrade CPUs. I am wanting to go to a Q9650 from my E8400 when its time to upgrade for me. I don't want to jump into a whole new build just yet.Reply -
godwhomismike So, what is Apple's excuse now for not being able to do Quad-Core CPUs in the iMac? They now have cooler and lower power consuming Quad Cores.Reply -
rdawise This move has everything to do with AMD. If it was to give the i7 precedence, they would have lowered i7 prices making them more attractive and fly off shelves. It is still higher than AMD which is carving itself a nice little niche in the "bargain CPU" market (almost like the Wal-mart of CPUs, expect the cash flow). There really needs to be a price cut on all 775 CPUs to get them out so they could fully move to i7 and i5. If there was a cut on all 775, AMD would start leaping from their windows.Reply -
hustler539 The title of this looked promising, but I was disappointed to not find they had lowered the prices of the e8xxx core 2 duos. It's a shame really that an e8600 has remained at the same price for so long considering an i7 920 can be had for about the same price.Reply