From Intel, we learn that overclocking will no longer be a practice reserved for those who pay the most! Until now, if you wanted to overclock a processor, you had to go for “K/KF” models with a Core i5, a Core i7 and a specific Core i9. Problem: the price. In the past, there was a Pentium G3258 that you could overclock to your heart’s content, but it was an anniversary model. Now, in an interview, Robert Hallock announces his intention to produce more overclockable processors over time!
Intel: the return of overclocking for all?
No longer just a matter of credit cards!
This is the good news of the day, as Rober Hallock, in an interview, stated that:
“What you’ll see is more and more references unlocked over time. That’s the goal. It shouldn’t be a feature that’s reserved exclusively for the highest-paying users. Not everyone can afford to spend more […] and that doesn’t make them any less passionate than someone who invests $500 in a processor. They’re still enthusiasts and deserve the same level of functionality, and that’s what we want to provide in our roadmaps.”
Obviously, this doesn’t tell us how Intel intends to precede or how many unlocked references will be brought to market. However, if we could have overclockable Core 3s and other affordable references, that would be a big plus. It’s worth pointing out that at AMD, all CPUs can be overclocked, provided you have a motherboard with a B or X chipset. Note, however, that X3D processors, by virtue of their design, are not necessarily overclockable or only partially so.
The result of restructuring?
This move seems to be the result of internal restructuring on the blue side. The arrival of new CEO Lip Bu Tan was not only synonymous with redundancy plans, but also with restructuring. As a result, the DIY branch is no longer managed by the same teams as the OEM CPU branch.
Obviously, apart from a few vague rumors linked to future Arrow Lake chipsets, for the moment we have no precise idea of how Intel’s new unlocked CPUs will be offered. We’ll probably find out more when Nova Lake is launched.
