CPU3D.com

Part One (Socio-economic ramblings)

When writing a new motherboard review your initial thoughts tend to focus on the quality of the components, the layout, the bios, and later on, package design and the bundled contents. However, when the Gigabyte GA- EX58 Extreme landed in the lab, one of the first thoughts that sprung to mind was timing.

It is also likely that Intel and its partners have also been somewhat preoccupied with this matter. Let me expand upon this. Whenever a new product is launched you can expect that various departments will get together, and plan to launch at the most advantageous time. Holiday periods are a usual favorite, or even the launch of a competitor’s product, especially when you know your offering will out perform the competition. Unfortunately, Intel hasn’t had to worry about the competition for quite some time. AMD’ processors haven’t been poor, Intel have merely produced a better product. As a result there has only been one choice, and that was Intel. Hopefully AMD’s Deneb processor will offer stiffer opposition.

I imagine where Intel and its partners have lost sleep, is in the main due to the unexpected economic downturn. Intel would have known it would have been a difficult task to sell the new i7 processor on the back of the Core 2 Duo/Quad. The Core 2 has been a great success, and it’s likely to be a great performer for some time to come. There is no new software or hardware on the horizon that is likely to bring the Core 2 Duo to its knees. In fact the i7 is unlikely to be fully utilized for at least 12 months. Yes it may have a more efficient memory controller, and it will outperform the Core 2, but it’s highly unlikely to hasten the Core 2 Duo’s march into the processor graveyard. It’s not just me who is a little underwhelmed by the arrival of the i7. Looking around the net I don’t see a great deal of excitement and chatter, which is not usually the case when a new technology has been released.

Most consumers recognize that buying at launch will get you the latest technology, and that this will at times come at the cost of temperamental setups, which require bios updates, and visits to various forums to identify incompatible hardware. Then there is the high price of the hardware. In the case of the i7 you not only have a new CPU, you also have a new chipset which requires a new motherboard, and the more expensive DDR3 RAM. Intel X58 motherboards are retailing for around £250-£300. Though to be fair to Intel the i7 920 (2.66Ghz) is reasonably priced when you consider the initial costs of the Core 2 Duo/Quad.

You would be hard pressed to imagine a worse scenario than the current financial crises Intel are faced with today. It was already going to be difficult to launch a high octane promotional campaign on the back of the success of the Core 2 Duo/Quad, but to drag out the dancing silver lab men in a big hurrah seems somewhat crass considering the economic malaise we find ourselves in.

I imagine Intel would have originally gone all guns blazing for the razzmatazz and ticker tape, but they are now faced with the option of appearing out of touch with the concerns of the common people. They could simply allowing the launch to go by with a reluctant shrug and half a smile and a tag line, “oh by the way you might like this, but if you are worried about your mortgage and making ends meet, your existing PC is probably going to be fine for the next 12 months.” A post modern ironic ad campaign with a sprinkling of reverse psychology it may well be, but it’s hardly going to set the world alight and spread confidence around the world of IT. And boy does the world need a little good news at the moment.

So having veered off into the realms of socio-economics, and my attempt to place the launch of the i7 CPU and X58 chipset in some sort of context, I will get on with the review. After all, that’s why you came to www.cpu3d.com