Intel Core i9-10900X & i9-10940X Processor Review

Peter Donnell / 5 years ago

The new Intel 10th Generation processors are here at last, and we kick things off today with not one, but two offerings from the flagship i9-series! We have that 10-core 20-thread Intel Core i9-10900X, as well as the 14-core 28-thread Intel Core i9-10940X. I must admit, the new product names are getting a bit bloated and even a bit more confusing than ever before. However, both the new CPUs are built for the X299 LGA2066 socket, which means they’ll work on older X299 motherboards, as well as any refresh motherboards releasing for the launch; albeit you may need to update the BIOS on older models.

The new CPUs are not built for your typical consumer, these are very high-end parts built for the enthusiast and professional markets. Video editing, game development, and other processor-intensive workstation tasks are where X299 really comes into its own. That’s not to say you can’t use them for a high-end gaming rig though, as I’m sure many people have with X299 before.

Intel Core i9-10900X

As I said before, the CPUs are both Intel X299 socket compatible, so they look pretty much as you would expect. This is good news for those rocking the older motherboards and it’s refreshing to see a new Intel CPU that doesn’t require yet another motherboard refresh.

i9-10900X Features

Cores/Threads – 10/20
Base/Turbo/Turbo Max 3.0 – 3.7GHz/4.5GHz/4.7GHz
TDP – 165w
Socket – LGA2066
Chipset – X299
PCI Lanes – 48 @ PCIe 3.0

For in-depth specifications, please visit the official Intel product page here.

Intel Core i9-10940X

Both of the CPUs come without a CPU cooler in the box. That means you will need an X299 compatible cooler of your own. It’ll also need to be a pretty decent one too, as these are powerful CPUs with a TDP of 165W and that’s before and overclocking is applied, so high-end air coolers and AIO coolers are a bare minimum here.