Intel’s 9th Generation Core i9-9900ks Special Edition Impressions
At the 2019 Intel Experience Day, we got a first-hand look at Intel’s most significant core processor to date. Created specifically with gamers in mind, out of the box, you’ll find the i9-9900KS is capable of up to 5.0 GHz all-core turbo frequency. It boasts eight cores and 16 threads, 127W TDP, a 16 MB Intel Smart Cache, and up to 40 platform and PCIe lanes for gaming and overclocking.
What probably has me most excited about this is the all-core turbo frequency. Running eight cores at a 5.0 GHz turbo frequency (4.0 GHz base frequency) allows games to run faster when they scale across the cores for higher frame rates. This was shown off briefly, and I must say the results were resoundingly impressive. The new Call of Duty was used to demonstrate this, and there were times I couldn’t tell if they were playing a game or rolling a reel of military footage.
For Gamers
Intel is looking to make difficulties with overclocking a thing of the past with the “Intel Performance Maximizer” (IPM). The IPM is a downloadable hub that will give you ease-of-access like never before, giving players the ability to dynamically custom-tune the unlocked processor based on the processor’s individual performance DNA.
The new core also is here to make the lives of streamers and content creators more efficient than ever before. Intel touted “Mega-Tasking” as one of their new main initiatives moving forward. Mega-Tasking is the term coined for what the i9-9900KS is making possible for multi-taskers, with a 27% increase in speeds when you’re gaming, streaming, and recording all at the same time. Intel did note that this was in comparison to a 3-year-old computer, but there’s no doubt that this would make for a fantastic upgrade to any PC. On the flip side of that, if your specialty is more in content creation, the i9-9900KS is promising a 17% increase to 4K video editing speeds when compared with the previous generation, and a 78% speed increase over a PC that’s 3-years-old.
As of October 30th, the i9-9900KS Special Edition has been on sale, and I’d recommend acting fast as this is a limited edition of the product. Priced at $513, it’s slightly higher than what the old model launched at, but from my impressions, Intel has undoubtedly justified the cost. If you’re serious about PC gaming, streaming, or content creation, this is for you.