Update 5/27 7:20 PM EST: Intel has told Tom’s Hardware that these new coolers are exclusive to the following SKUs:
- 10th Gen Intel Core i9 and Core i7 desktop processors (i9-10900, i9-10900F, i7-10700, i7-10700F)
- Intel Xeon W-1200 workstation processors (W-1290, W-1270, W-1250)
Original article:
Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but is there a single enthusiast out there who would consider Intel’s stock CPU coolers sexy? Nope. That’s why the company has decided to introduce a brand-new design that’s a little easier on the eyes. As spotted on Nguyen Cong Computer and China’s Chip Hell forums (via Tom’s Hardware), Core i7-10700 processors are shipping with a sleek cooler (rated for 80 W of cooling capacity) that’s slimmer and blacked out. It also marks a return to a copper-based core.
“The copper core helps the cooler wick more heat from the processor than the old aluminum core, and that’s a sorely needed improvement,” wrote Tom’s Hardware. “Intel did use a copper core in the past, but discarded it with its previous-gen boxed coolers, instead going with an all-aluminum core that could lead to performance limitations. That’s because Intel has traditionally provided boxed coolers that match the processor’s TDP specifications.”
Intel hasn’t commented on why it’s finally decided to improve its coolers’ aesthetics, but it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that the competition probably had something to do with it. AMD’s lineup of Wraith PRISM, MAX, SPIRE, and STEALTH solutions are practically works of art in comparison.
