Monday, August 15th 2011
Sandy Bridge-E Won't Pack Stock Coolers, Intel to Sell them Separately
Intel's upcoming Core i7 processors in the LGA2011 package, codenamed "Sandy Bridge-E," will come in a unique package that's completely different from what's being reported as AMD's, in which self-contained liquid CPU coolers will be bundled with some FX-series processors. Intel's upcoming Core i7-3820, Core i7-3930K and the Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition processor boxes will lack Intel's certified (stock) heatsink-fan (HSF). Instead, Intel plans to sell the certified coolers separately, probably having the same market reach and availability as the processors themselves.
The idea behind this is that the target users of Sandy Bridge-E will most likely use third-party cooling solutions. Hence it makes sense to save them of a chunk of metal they'll probably never use. For those who do use stock cooling, seldom/never overclock, and rely on the Intel certification to go with the cooler, Intel will have the certified cooler available separately for purchase, with its retail partners. Sandy Bridge-E processors have a rated TDP of 130W, though tests by those having access to engineering samples have shown that it can reach as much as 180W on load, even without overclocking. It is expected that PC cooling products manufacturers will have entire lines of LGA2011-ready coolers in time for the launch of Sandy Bridge-E.
Source:
VR-Zone
The idea behind this is that the target users of Sandy Bridge-E will most likely use third-party cooling solutions. Hence it makes sense to save them of a chunk of metal they'll probably never use. For those who do use stock cooling, seldom/never overclock, and rely on the Intel certification to go with the cooler, Intel will have the certified cooler available separately for purchase, with its retail partners. Sandy Bridge-E processors have a rated TDP of 130W, though tests by those having access to engineering samples have shown that it can reach as much as 180W on load, even without overclocking. It is expected that PC cooling products manufacturers will have entire lines of LGA2011-ready coolers in time for the launch of Sandy Bridge-E.
65 Comments on Sandy Bridge-E Won't Pack Stock Coolers, Intel to Sell them Separately
I have to reiterate that timidness and ignorance tend to go hand in hand. I just can't see a significant amount of the people who don't know that they need a heatsink not being aware enough to see 2 or more well placed warning labels.
Actually an easy way for all of this to be avoided is to require that 2011 motherboards have a circuit that will only complete when the metal from a heatsink is screwed into the mounting holes. If nothing's detected it'll only boot into the UEFI with the same warning and some instructions.
Or maybe they can knock it off a measly $10 to make us happy :laugh: /sarcasm
All this stuff is obvious to us (well, mostly anyway) but I think even the cautious noobie will be lost unless they decide to buy the Intel recommended heat sink. I'm sure many will do that, but i have to wonder if "many" will mean "all" or even "most."
Like I said, I hope you're right and maybe I'm being unduly pessimistic. It won't be the first time I've been wrong but it will be one of the few times I'll be happy about it. :D