Today, Intel's Core i9-13900KS breaks the 6GHz barrier.

 

The first CPU to reach 6 GHz in stock form will be the Core i9-13900KS.

The eagerly anticipated Core i9-13900KS from Intel was finally unwrapped on Thursday morning, making it the first x86 consumer CPU to achieve 6GHz. Since the chip will cost $699 when it goes on sale today, you will have to pay more for the privilege of breaking barriers.

The 24-core Core i9-113900KS is essentially a special edition of the Core i9-13900K, which has already been released and is unapologetically fast. It has eight performance cores and 16 efficiency cores. On single-core loads, the original Core i9-13900K could reach 5.8GHz, while the Core i9-13900KS can smooth that out to 6.0GHz.

In a statement, Intel Client Computing Group manager Marcus Kennedy said, "The Core i9-13900KS continues our 13th Gen Intel Core desktop processor family excellence, showcasing the new performance heights made possible by our performance hybrid architecture." The first desktop processor in the PC industry to offer stock speeds of 6.0 GHz means that avid gamers and enthusiasts can now push their everyday performance to new heights.

So, how much performance gain does a 200 MHz boost in turbo speeds provide? On the surface, the new Core i9-13900KS might perform some tasks faster than the current 13900K by about 4%. The new KS chip may also offer a slight advantage in other areas. Companies typically sort CPUs according to their quality, a process known as "binning," which typically signifies that the best binned chips are the best of the best and bring additional qualities in addition to the highest stock speeds.

However, it gives Intel something to boast about in comparison to the competition. Strangely, humans care a lot about big, round numbers. Some people even say that 6GHz is more eye-catching than, say, 6.2GHz. To put it another way, it's really all psychological, and it gives both companies pride because they've been fighting over desktop processor performance for years.

AMD's new Ryzen 9 7950X3D chip, which was revealed at CES, is likely to compete with the Core i9-13900KS. Intel has a clear runway for when its Core i9-13900KS goes on sale today because AMD has yet to announce a price or a date when it will be available.