Intel’s Skylake and 100 Series Chipset Details, Universal Overclocking Is Back

We don’t have to wait long until Intel releases their new and 6th Gen Core Skylake processors. The new generation is scheduled to arrive in the second quarter and Intel has shown a lot of new systems utilizing the new chips before and during the IDF 2015 in Shenzhen, but the full specifications for the new generation have eluded us so far.

New slides have changed that and we now know a lot more about the new Skylake-S LGA 1151 platform as well as the new Intel 100 series chipsets. The processors are split into three groups for power consumption: dual cores from 35W to 65W quad-cores from 35W to 65W, and enthusiast quad cores at 95W TDP. The will come with support for both DDR3 and DDR4 memory.

The iGPU supports the latests APIs such as DX12, OpenGL 4.4, and OpenCL2.0 and also support acceleration for HEVC, VP8, and VP9 media codecs. You can connect up to three independent displays and run a resolution up to  4096×2304.

One of the highlights is for the unlocked K-series processors. They will get enhanced and full range BLCK overclocking for a more precise and better overclock. The new processors will also need a new chipset and that is the new Intel 100 series and they are a little highlight in themselves.

The new chipsets come with increased port flexibility with up to 40% higher input/outputs. The Intel RST 14 technology has PCIe storage support for up to four M.2 and two SATA Express connections, so you won’t be short of high-speed storage anymore.

Motherboards utilizing the new Intel 100 series chipsets are expected to start selling in June, so that’s just around the corner. They are divided into the usual three categories with Z170 for performance, H170 for the mainstream, and H110 as the value option.

If you want it all, you have to spring for the performance series and Z170 chipset and you’ll get three PCIe 3.0 connections (1×16 or 2×8 or 1×8 + 2×4) and the ability to overclock the processor. The two H-series chipsets only give you one x16 connection and you can’t OC your processor. The Z170 will also give you a total of 10 USB 3.0 where the H170 only has 8 and the H110 has 4. The two 170′ chipsets both feature six SATA 3.0 ports where the H110 only has four.

We’ve also got the first leaks on actual processors, both i5 and i7 versions of the new 14nm technology. The i7-6700K have a 4GHz base frequency and a minor turbo up to 4.2GHz. It has four hyperthreaded cores and 8MB cache. The i5-6600K only has a 3.5GHz base clock, but the turbo takes it to 3.9GHz. The i5 only has four single cores and 6MB cache, but both chips support the same DDR3-1600 and DDR4-2133 memory and also come with the same 95W TDP.