B&H Photo and Video, a large retail chain from the USA, has started to list Intel’s Core i9-9900KF processor. The CPU is yet to become available, but since B&H is (as far as we can tell) the only company in the country to offer the product so far, it charges a hefty premium. In fact, the listing for the Core i9-9900KF without integreated graphics has a price more than that of the Core i9-9900K with integrated graphics which is in stock.

The Core i9-9900KF has eight Hyper-Threaded cores that operate at 3.6-5.0 GHz, is equipped with a 16 MB L3 cache, features a dual-channel DDR4-2666 memory controller, and is rated for a 95 W TDP. The CPU features an unlocked multiplier and is aimed at enthusiasts who do not need integrated graphics as they use discrete graphics. The processor was released mainly becase it enables Intel to meet demand for its eight-core CPUs for mainstream platform. Officially, Intel’s Core i9-9900K and Core i9-9900KF processors cost $488 in 1000-unit quantities, but their retail prices vary greatly.

B&H offers to pre-order the Core i9-9900KF for $582.50, whereas the Core i9-9900K is actually available for $530, or for $52.50 less. Possibly because the number of Core i9-9900KF processors that B&H had managed to procure is limited, the company is selling them at a premium even though they lack a useful feature. Either that, or this is a place holder price.

Intel 9th Gen Core CPUs
AnandTech Cores Base
Freq
Turbo
Freq
IGP IGP
Freq
DDR4 TDP Price
(1ku)
i9-9900K 8 / 16 3.6 GHz 5.0 GHz UHD 630 1200 2666 95 W $488
i9-9900KF 8 / 16 3.6 GHz 5.0 GHz - - 2666 95 W $488
i7-9700K 8 / 8 3.6 GHz 4.9 GHz UHD 630 1200 2666 95 W $374
i7-9700KF 8 / 8 3.6 GHz 4.9 GHz - - 2666 95 W $374
i5-9600K 6 / 6 3.7 GHz 4.6 GHz UHD 630 1150 2666 95 W $262
i5-9600KF 6 / 6 3.7 GHz 4.6 GHz - - 2666 95 W $262
i5-9400 6 / 6 2.9 GHz 4.1 GHz UHD 630 1050 2666 65 W $182
i5-9400F 6 / 6 2.9 GHz 4.1 GHz - - 2666 65 W $182
i3-9350KF 4 / 4 4.0 GHz 4.6 GHz - - 2400 91 W $173
Relevant Intel 8th Gen Core CPUs
i3-8350K 4 / 4 4.0 GHz - UHD 630 1150 2400 91 W $168
i3-8100 4 / 4 3.6 GHz - UHD 630 1100 2400 65 W $117
i3-8100F 4 / 4 3.6 GHz - - - 2400 65 W $117

Earlier in January Intel added six more CPUs to its 9th Gen Core lineup: the eight-core Core i9-9900KF and Core i7-9700KF; the six-core Core i5-9600KF and Core i5-9400F; as well as the quad-core Core i3-9350KF. According to Intel’s current terminology, the processors with model numbers ending with F lack integrated graphics, so these new CPUs will mainly target PCs that have to use discrete graphics. 


The i9-9900K Packaging

Other retailers are also starting to list the F processors. In the UK, Scan is offering the 9900KF in retail packaging for £510 at pre-order (compared to the 9900K at £500), as well as the Core i5-9400F at £190 listed as in stock.

Related Reading

Source: B&H

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  • woggs - Tuesday, January 29, 2019 - link

    Will people really be stupid enough to pay more for less? If so... Then... Um? Bravo?? :/
  • Sttm - Tuesday, January 29, 2019 - link

    Yeah it does not really make sense unless there is some sort of overclocking advantage I am unaware of.
  • woggs - Tuesday, January 29, 2019 - link

    It would be part of the marketing campaign if so.
  • ImSpartacus - Wednesday, January 30, 2019 - link

    There is sometimes a tiny advantage to having "dark silicon" to suck up heat and reduce thermal density, making it easier to cool.

    But the difference between an idling GPU and a fused off GPU is minimal, so my bet is that Intel is just looking to make their supply go further.
  • twotwotwo - Tuesday, January 29, 2019 - link

    Think they're betting that people will pay the same for less if it's the only way they can get a chip *now* (because of the constrained supply) and they weren't going to use the IGP much anyway (because they already want a graphics card). Still just weird to charge the same for them, but "it's the only variant in stock" is a legit reason to get one.
  • Lord of the Bored - Tuesday, January 29, 2019 - link

    Sounds like a legit reason to go AMD, to me.
    Pity Intel and AMD use different interfaces these days and we can't Am486 it up anymore, or do a repeat of the Socket 7 omniplatform.
  • Samus - Wednesday, January 30, 2019 - link

    Even paying the SAME for less is ridiculous. Without the iGPU you are undoubtedly losing features, even if you use a dGPU, such as Quicksync.
  • maroon1 - Friday, February 1, 2019 - link

    If your dGPU get broken or you sell it, you still have iGPU as a spare
  • cosmotic - Tuesday, January 29, 2019 - link

    Is there a thermal advantage to the chips with the graphics fused off? Obviously its nice for intel that they can sell an otherwise unsellable chip when there are defects on the graphics portion of the die... but shouldn't it be cheaper?
  • DigitalFreak - Tuesday, January 29, 2019 - link

    I guess that's something Anandtech needs to test. :-)

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