Intel hasn't updated its line of HEDT processors in a while but that will soon change. The company has started teasing its return to the market via social media, claiming the new workstation CPUs are “coming soon”.
Intel has now publicly confirmed that its new HEDT processors are indeed right around the corner. While we don't have a specific announcement date yet, Intel says its new CPUs are coming soon, so rumours of a Q1 launch are likely correct.
Coming Soon: You’re going to have to schedule your coffee breaks, because Intel’s new workstation processors mean less time waiting. Your workstation will work as fast as you do. pic.twitter.com/9oFBL3TLBZ
— Intel Technology (@IntelTech) December 6, 2022
Intel's new workstation processors are based on the Sapphire Rapids platform, featuring up to 56 cores, 112 threads and up to 350W TDP. Compatible motherboards will use the W790 chipset and use the new LGA-4677 socket and support DDR5 memory and PCIe 5.0.
For now, we know about two CPU series: the Xeon W-3400 and the Xeon W-2400. The former is rumoured to feature up to 112 PCIe lanes and support octa-channel DDR5 memory. As for the latter, it's claimed it will be limited to 64 lanes and quad-channel memory.
KitGuru says: Even if Intel's new HEDT CPUs don't match the immense core count of the AMD Ryzen Threadripper, it still has the chance to outperform on a per-core basis. We're in for an interesting battle ahead with Intel's Sapphire Rapids processors taking on AMD's upcoming Zen-based Threadripper CPUs.