Intel Drops Prices on Dual and Quad-Core Processors
Posted 07/21/08 at 01:51:18 PM | by Paul Lilly
Good news for system builders and upgraders alike: Intel has cut processor prices (PDF) by as much as 31 percent. And these aren't price cuts on chips that nobody cares about either, but they include some overclocking favorites in both dual and quad-core trim:
- Q6600, $224 to $193 (14% drop)
- E8500, $266 to $183 (31% drop)
- E8400, $183 to $164 (11% drop)
- E7200, $188 to $113 (15% drop)
A handful of Xeon processors have also been marked down, but the real treat here is for overclockers. All four desktop processors have become extremely popular chips in the overclocking community due to their reputation for ramping up in clockspeed with minimal effort, and save for the E8500, each one could have been considered a bargain before the price cut. Now the price-to-performance ratio looks even better, enough so that those holding out for Nehalem may be tempted to pull the trigger now rather than wait. But on which one? Here's a refresher if you've been out of the loop for awhile:
- Q6600 (2.4GHz, 8MB, 1066MHz, x9 multiplier)
- E8500 (3.16GHz, 6MB, 1333MHz, x9.5 multiplier)
- E8400 (3.0GHz, 6MB, 1333MHz, x9 multiplier)
- E7200 (2.53GHz, 3MB, 1066MHz, x9.5 multiplier)
Prices represent 1,000 unit trays, so expect to pay a little bit more at your favorite vendor. Still who can complain, and at these price points the question of the day is, build now or wait?

Image Credit: Intel
Buy some double cheese
Submitted by gatorXXX on Tue, 2008-07-22 13:48
Buy some double cheese burgers and large fries off the dollar menu at mickey D's!
ThE OnLy wAy 2 pLaY!
dedgar, 1) We've known that
Submitted by sinan on Mon, 2008-07-21 14:38
dedgar,
1) We've known that these price cuts were coming at least for a couple of months now
2) So you would've saved what $10-$15 on your E8400?
Cheer up man!
I am pretty torn myself. Wait for Nehalem or grab an E8500? Hmmmm!
Buy Now or Wait?
Submitted by One4yu2c on Mon, 2008-07-21 15:12
Depending on what you currently own, it might not be a bad idea to piece together a relatively inexpensive Core 2 Duo rig, like the E7200, and overclock the nuts off it until Nehalem has a chance to settle in the marketplace. Coupled with some low-cost DDR2, you can piece together a damn good rig on a small budget to hold you over till the end of the year or beyond.
I like AMD's case stickers
Submitted by gatorXXX on Mon, 2008-07-21 13:20
I like AMD's case stickers better.....
ThE OnLy wAy 2 pLaY!
Hell ya...
Submitted by pepper_roni on Mon, 2008-07-21 13:20
That pc i wanna build is getting closer and closer to my pricepoint. :)
Yup, they lower the price.
Submitted by dedgar on Mon, 2008-07-21 12:49
Yup, they lower the price. One week after I buy an E8400, they lower the price. :(
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