I wish it would read sub-zero temps.
It does! Don't blame the software if it doesn't. RealTemp can theoretically read core temps as low as -32C but unfortunately the sensor it is reading usually gets stuck before the temperature can get that low. Blame Intel for that.
wolf2009: I still don't know if this program reads the temps for 45nm processors correctly.
The processor I had in my computer during initial development was an early E8400. Here is the CPU I used during testing back in February.
Anyone that has used RealTemp has seen this same processor because it's part of the icon:
The whole motivation behind RealTemp was I wanted some accurate temperatures for my 45nm E8400. I was so fed up with what other temp programs were telling me that I finally decided to write my own. I even tried to contact the programmer of CoreTemp before I started to get him to at least use the correct TjMax but my request was ignored.
I definitely didn't hold anything back during testing.
All tests show that RealTemp reads my E8400 within a degree or two of the real temperature from 15C in my cool basement to beyond TjMax which was at 95C. I have some good tests posted over on the
XS forum but unfortunately that site is down at the moment. I'll post some links for you when they're back up or better yet I'll just copy and paste one of my E8400 tests here. The current version of RealTemp has more calibration options than the first version so accuracy for all processors has only improved since its initial release.
Edit: Here's a
link to a test I did on an E2160. I realize this isn't 45nm but hopefully the thoroughness of this test will show you that I did put a little bit of research into RealTemp before it was written as well as after.
Recently at XS, another user with a 45nm Quad told me how skeptical he was about RealTemp. With an open mind, he read the docs, read through some of the 70 page forum at XS, did the calibration tests that are outlined in the
docs here at TechPowerUp and came to the conclusion that RealTemp is giving him the most realistic temp numbers. The best thing you can do is read some of the 70 page novel over at XS until your eyes are sore and then do your own testing and come to your own conclusions.
There are a lot of 45nm processors with sensor issues. If a sensor is stuck and not functioning properly at idle then there isn't much any software can do with that. If the sensors aren't stuck then the temperatures reported by RealTemp after calibration should be very close to reality across the entire temperature range. None of the competition can claim that.
When the abuse was over I installed a Tuniq and made sure that there was nothing wrong with this CPU.