Intel Core i7-965 Extreme Edition review
To put the Core i7-965 Extreme Edition in perspective, we compared it with the year-old Core 2 Extreme QX9650. The Core i7 boasts a faster clock speed and an L3 cache shared by the four cores that's four times larger than that of the older chip. With the integrated RAM controller on Core i7 replacing the need for a front side bus, the platforms are quite different from each other, so the specs don't tell the whole story. The performance results speak more clearly.
Multimedia multitasking test (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
Intel Core i7-965 Extreme Edition
95
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650
109
Apple iTunes encoding test (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
Intel Core i7-965 Extreme Edition
117
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650
122
Adobe Photoshop CS3 test (in seconds)
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
Intel Core i7-965 Extreme Edition
74
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650
84
CineBench 10
(Longer bars indicate faster performance)
Intel Core i7-965 Extreme Edition
19,434
4,443
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650
13,192
3,707
CPU-limited Far Cry 2
(1,024 x 768, low-quality, no AA/AF)
Intel Core i7-965 Extreme Edition
176
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650
154
Power consumption (in watts)
(Shorter bars indicate faster performance)
Intel Core i7-965 Extreme Edition
328
201
Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650
335
201
The Core i7 chip is faster than the QX9650 on every test, but we were most impressed by the CineBench multicore test and the Far Cry 2 benchmark, where Intel's new CPU established a sizable performance advantage. Gamers and digital media editors may likely have assumed that Core i7 is worth their attention. As we can see from our testing, any such assumption is clearly justified. We should add that the Core 2 Extreme QX9650 was actually surpassed earlier by the Core 2 Extreme QX9770, a US$1,500 CPU that uses Intel's X48 chipset. Time constraints prevented us from testing that CPU as well, but based on early results from PC World Greece (via Engadget), it appears that Core i7 trounces that chip as well. We expect the Web will flood with reviews of the entire Core i7 family at the same time that this review launches. We encourage anyone considering a new CPU purchase to read as much coverage as possible to make the most informed buying decision. Any CPU with a US$999 price tag merits careful consideration. System configurations: Intel Core i7-956 Extreme Edition Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit; Intel DX58SO motherboard 4GB Kingston 1,066MHz DDR3 SDRAM; 1GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 280 graphics card; 74GB Western Digital 10,000rpm hard drive Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650 Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit; Asus Maximus Formula Special Edition motherboard; 4GB 800MHz DDR2 SDRAM; 1GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 280; 74GB Western Digital 10,000rpm hard drive Tags: Motherboard, chipset, Chip, processor, Intel Corp. |
- Talkback
-
sevenich says...
Intel's Nehalem CPU architecture, now commercially branded as i7 Core, will outperform even their very own extreme Quad Core. In a way, the comparison is not apple-to-apple because Nehalem is a very different architecture, a much better one... it is the first time that Intel is using memory controller and its QuickPath interconnect technology, features that will undoubtedly become permanent in the years ahead. If you want a PC that you don't need to upgrade for 2-3 years, will take in possible software releases overr the period, will run native 64-bit applications flawlessly... this is the product you're waiting for.
Nov 12, 2008 10:15
Intel's Nehalem CPU architecture, now commercially branded as i7 Core, will outperform even their very own extreme Quad Core. In a way, the comparison is not apple-to-apple because Nehalem is a very different architecture, a much better one... it is the first time that Intel is using memory controller and its QuickPath interconnect technology, features that will undoubtedly become permanent in the years ahead. If you want a PC that you don't need to upgrade for 2-3 years, will take in possible software releases overr the period, will run native 64-bit applications flawlessly... this is the product you're waiting for.
Nov 12, 2008 10:15
To post comments, you need to become a member. It's FREE.
