Intel finally admits that their 28-core CPU demo was overclocked – confusing marketing all around

Intel finally admits that their 28-core product demo was overclocked - confusing marketing all around

Intel admits that their 28-core CPU demo was overclocked – confusing marketing all around

Intel’s 28-core CPU demo has been getting a lot of flack from the press, highlighting how the company omitted important details from their product showcase, leaving those who less well acquainted with PC hardware surprised and confused by Intel’s insane performance numbers.    

In recent interviews, Intel PR representatives have confirmed that “in the excitement of the moment” that Intel’s Gregory Bryant “forgot” to mention that their demo system was overclocked, a detail which was present on the company’s teleprompter for the event. This detail is a convenient omission, one which completely changes how Intel’s demo was presented to those at the conference, though it is not a change outside of the realm of possibility. 

At the start of their demo, Intel stated that “Without further ado, I would like to present to you a new 28-core processor” and later in the demo, Bryant discussed the possibilities of a processor that offered the benefits of both high single-threaded performance and multi-threaded performance. What’s never mentioned in the demo is that the system was heavily overclocked and that the system required an industrial-grade water cooler to operate. 

Tom’s Hardware has reported that they were unable to get a private demo of Intel’s insane 28-cores at 5GHz demo because the area where the system was located “simply didn’t have enough dedicated circuits for the task”, confirming that the system guzzled an insane amount of power. 

Intel to launch 28-core CPU before the year's end - Demoed at 5GHz on all cores

 
Tom’s Hardware has also been able to nail down some other details about Intel’s new processor, something that has been suspected but so far unverified. Intel confirmed that their 28-core was a 14nm product that will target professional workstations and hasn’t decided what product series it will fall into. 

Intel’s product demo was accompanied by an image which showcased the words “28 core”, and a gamer wearing a headset and was presented inside a system with a Gigabyte Aorus-branded prototype motherboard and RGB Aorus memory, things that don’t scream “professional workstation” to anyone. 

The best explanation for Intel’s demo was that they wanted to steal the thunder from AMD’s Threadripper 2 reveal, as at the time most onlookers were expecting AMD to reveal a 24-core processor as their new flagship, not a 32-core CPU. Intel focused on their highest-core count CPU at clock speeds that are higher than what Ryzen 2nd Generation processors can achieve, rather than focus on revealing a consumer-oriented product with a defined user base and a realistic cooling setup. 

The contrast here is that AMD presented their 32-core and 24-core CPU demos on air cooling using understood professional workloads, whereas Intel delivered a single benchmark result with a system that was so heavily overclocked that it required an industrial strength water cooler. 

You can join the discussion on Intel’s admission that their 28-core product demo was overclocked on the OC3D Forums.Â