Intel Launches Core i7 990X Extreme Edition CPU

We'll have to wait and see if Intel makes a formal announcement later today, but regardless, you can now hop online and purchase a Core i7 990X Extreme Edition processor. The 990X is Intel's new flagship hexacore chip for the desktop, and the latest justification for jumping on the enthusiast-oriented LGA 1366 platform, with a power user price tag to match. This thing streets for around $1,050 shipped, and while that's expensive, it's also par for the EE course.

The 990X Extreme Edition comes unlocked and loaded with 12MB of L3 cache. It's built on a 32nm manufacturing process, sports a 130W TDP, and is the same as the processor it's replacing except for on thing: clockspeed. While the 980X comes clocked at 3.33GHz (3.6GHz Turbo Boost), the new 990X races along at 3.46GHz (also 3.6GHz Turbo Boost).

For high-end budget buyers, the smart money, if there can be such a thing when talking about Extreme Edition processor, might eventually be on the 980X. Right now the street price is $50 less than the 990X, but we suspect that will drop in time.