Review: Intel Core i9-9900K

by Parm Mann on 19 October 2018, 14:00

Tags: Intel (NASDAQ:INTC)

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HEXUS Bang4Buck and Bang4Watt

The performance benchmarks on the previous pages tell part of the story, but it is always fun to add some Bang4Buck metrics into the mix. Do be aware that there are many methods of calculating such results - different benchmarks will skew the outcome, and prices can both fluctuate daily and vary wildly depending on region.

We've chosen to use the multi-threaded Cinebench test as a basis for our results, and pricing was taken from Newegg.com on October 18, 2018.

Here's where the Core i9-9900K starts to look less impressive. At $580 (the retail price on Newegg at the time of writing), the chip offers less Bang4Buck than last year's Core i7-8700K, now $390. The $305 Ryzen 7 2700X stands apart.

Once again, these charts should be taken with a pinch of salt as one manufacturer's TDP doesn't necessarily align with another. Nevertheless, the Core i9-9900K's Cinebench performance is impressive for a 95W chip; there's no doubting the benchmarking credentials, it's the price that puts a dampener on things.

We can also combine Bang4Buck and Bang4Watt for an overall efficiency score. Taking 5.94 as the ceiling for Bang4Buck, and 21.40 for Bang4Watt, the weighted score shows the Core i9-9900K in a more favourable light, though if multi-threaded value is what you're after, the Ryzen 7 2700X continues to lead the way.