Intel 9th Gen Core Processors: All the Desktop and Mobile 45W CPUs Announced
by Ian Cutress on April 23, 2019 9:00 AM ESTIntel’s 9th Generation Core Mobile Processors: 45W H-Series
The 45W range of processors from Intel fits into the high-performance / prosumer niche of portable gaming laptops and workstations. These typically populate the 15.6-inch and 17.3-inch devices, going from a basic gaming system with a discrete graphics card all the way up to DTR, or DeskTop Replacement hardware, that takes the place of a full on desktop in a (insert non-committal gesture) mobile sort of form factor that weighs almost double digits in pounds.
Intel has recently released some mobile processors into the market, such as Whiskey Lake at 15W on 8th Gen, but this is the first proper outing for high performance 9th Gen in a mobile form factor. At this point, we’re not seeing a replacement for Kaby Lake-G, where Intel paired a H-series CPU with a Radeon GPU in the same package, so it will be interesting to see if that gets a refresh later this year.
Intel 9th Generation Core CPUs Mobile 45W H-Series |
||||||||
AnandTech | Cores Threads |
Base Freq |
Turbo Freq |
L3 Cache |
DDR4 | OC | TDP | |
i9-9980 | HK | 8C / 16T | 2.4 GHz | 4.9 GHz* | 16 MB | 2666 | Y | 45 W |
i9-9880 | H | 8C / 16T | 2.3 GHz | 4.7 GHz* | 16 MB | 2666 | 45 W | |
i7-9850 | H | 6C / 12T | 2.6 GHz | 4.6 GHz | 12 MB | 2666 | ish | 45 W |
i7-9750 | H | 6C / 12T | 2.6 GHz | 4.5 GHz | 12 MB | 2666 | 45 W | |
i5-9400 | H | 4C / 8T | 2.5 GHz | 4.3 GHz | 8 MB | 2666 | 45 W | |
i5-9300 | H | 4C / 8T | 2.4 GHz | 4.1 GHz | 8 MB | 2666 | 45 W | |
* i9 CPUs support Intel Thermal Velocity Boost for +100 MHz Turbo |
Enter the Musclebook: Intel is introducing the new ‘Musclebook’ name for the DTR equivalent devices. Ultimately these are likely to be paired with the high end Core i9 processors. Intel has two parts here, the 9980HK which allows for overclocking, and the 9880H. The 9880H equivalent is new to this processor stack, based on requests from Intel’s partners that they wanted something ‘as fast’ as the top HK model, but not actually overclockable – it turns out that if you stick a HK in a system, users expect to be able to push it, and OEMs wanted equivalent performance without having to build in support for overclocking.
Both the 9980HK and 9880H supports Intel’s Thermal Velocity Boost, giving an additional 100 MHz if the thermal performance of the hardware allows it. Again, Intel doesn’t specify what requirements those are, of if manufacturers can ignore them, or if it’s enabled by default etc. It could be somewhat misleading to include those values into the single core turbo frequencies, however with mobile platforms we’ve seen such a wide range in PL2 values set in hardware due to the form factor, there are a wide range of single core turbo frequencies that don’t match up to the SKU list anyway – this is OEM and design dependent, so there isn’t much fuss from us on this.
There are two Core i7 parts, with six cores and hyperthreading, and the Core i7-9750H supports ‘Partial Overclocking’. In Intel terminology, this means that the CPU can be up to 400 MHz higher if the OEM sets it as such, allowing the CPU to turbo up to 5.0 GHz. That will be extremely device dependent, and given the way that most OEMs deliver their specification sheets, it will be interesting to see if any of them actually list if this is the case, or just take the 4.6 GHz and not tell anyone.
The two Core i3 parts bring up the rear, with four cores and hyperthreading. This means Intel still makes quad cores with hyperthreading, even though they have disappeared from the desktop product line.
Given the tight integration of mobile chipsets into the products, expect to see a few new devices enabled with Intel’s new AX200 Wi-Fi 6 card that was launched last week. The mobile chipsets are also listed as supporting Samsung’s new 32 GB memory modules, so we will likely see some high-end ‘Musclebooks’/DTR replacements using those, at extreme cost to the user. Intel is again stating Optane storage support on these devices, as well as TB3 support when additional controllers are included.
With the annual Computex trade show around the corner (last week of May), we’re expecting to see a smorgasbord of devices being offered with the new H-series parts: both refreshes of old models and perhaps some new ones in the mix. Stay tuned for our coverage from the show.
135 Comments
View All Comments
GreenMeters - Tuesday, April 23, 2019 - link
So the IGP and non-IGP variants of the same processor have the same number of cores, same number of threads, same base frequency, same turbo frequency, same L3 cache, and same TDP. The "F" is the same exact chip, but missing IGP. Why are they the same MSRP? What is the market for paying the same price for something almost the same but missing one feature?catavalon21 - Tuesday, April 23, 2019 - link
I wondered the same thing, as well as why it has the same TDP. Removing or disabling IGP should reduce power or move that power to increasing some other performance facet...shouldn't it?GreenReaper - Wednesday, April 24, 2019 - link
See the die-dumping comment below, but also it might be that the CPU can use higher turbo bins because it doesn't have to consider the power usage of the GPU. Not sure that is true, though.The_Assimilator - Wednesday, April 24, 2019 - link
The market is that Intel can't supply enough product due to the ongoing 14nm/10nm World's Slowest Trainwreck, so they've resorted to selling dies that previously would've been dumped. That they sell said faulty dies at the same price as working ones is a shit in the face of consumers, but honestly... if you're dumb enough to buy an Intel CPU over Ryzen at this point in time, you deserve to get fucked over.garycahn - Tuesday, April 23, 2019 - link
Nowhere in the article does it tell us whether any of these new cores are immune to the Spectre problem that surfaced more than a year ago. Does anyone know the answer to this question?isthisavailable - Thursday, May 16, 2019 - link
Would like to know as well.HeyYou,It'sMe - Tuesday, April 23, 2019 - link
Well. This author wrote about Thermal Velocity Boost in the past, and a simple Google brings up a wealth of information and reporting about this from a ridiculous number of sources. Apparently he has forgotten this.Also, the i7-9700K has been in the market forever, and this very site has reviewed it. Unsurprisingly, other tech sites reported the chip as an i7 correctly, which means they were obviously able to spot the error on a processor that has been at retail for six months. Perhaps emailing the company and exercising the most basic of journalistic skills is in order here.
I'm not sure that these are mistakes. They feel like attempts to get attention/traffic.
WMGroomIV - Tuesday, April 23, 2019 - link
Can someone explain to me what the point of the F-series is? They don't appear to clock better and they are being priced the same as their non-F counterparts with IGPs. Is this a security thing or is it being targeted at OEM system builders? Just don't see why someone would give up the option of an IGP for no cost savings.Korguz - Tuesday, April 23, 2019 - link
from the article almost right at the top :K = Overclockable
KF = Overclockable with No Integrated Graphics
No Suffix = Standard CPU, 54-65W TDP, Integrated Graphics
F = No Integrated Graphics
T = Low Power, 35W TDP
WMGroomIV - Wednesday, April 24, 2019 - link
I get that, but why does the F-series even exist if they are pricing it the same as the equivalent chip with an IGP? I would even understand having an F-series chip if they were $20 to $30 less than the non F-series chips but spending the same price for a part missing features seems limiting.