Intel Core i9-10900KS Special Edition CPU Spotted

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A higher core count alternative to the i9-11900K?

Intel Core i9-9900K
(Image credit: Intel)

Intel just spilled the beans on an Intel Core i9-10900KS CPU that could be coming soon. An Intel Software Advantage Program qualifying list shows the SKU, leaving us wondering what it may offer over the standard Intel Core i9-10900K.

The document also states that buying the Core i9-10900KS or one of the (many) other qualifying CPUs will net you a free copy of Crysis Remastered. However, the 10900KS isn't out yet. In fact, this is the first time we've heard of the CPU. 

This is not Intel's first rodeo with special edition SKUs. Processors such as the Core i7-8086K and Core i9-9900KS were both limited/special edition products that offered the highest binned Intel silicon you could buy, as well as  the highest stock core frequencies possible at the time.

For instance, the Core i9-9900KS features a beefy all-core turbo of 5 GHz flat on all 8 CPU cores, even under AVX workloads. The vanilla i9-9900K could boost to 5 GHz but only on a few cores. As you loaded up more cores, the boost frequency would gradually drop, until you hit the CPUs all-core turbo of 4.7 GHz, (unless you enabled multi-core enhancement which would auto-overclock all cores to 5 GHz flat). 

The 10900KS could end up being a similar offering, though it seems difficult to fathom a 5.0 or 5.1GHz all-core-turbo frequency on 10 14nm cores without encountering serious power and heat issues. 

Also possibility is a higher all-core turbo clock, with Intel continuing to use a turbo core hierarchy, where some cores boost higher than others.

Again though, this is purely speculation. This is the first we've heard of the 10900KS so we have no idea when it will come out or what it will offer in attempts to compete with the best gaming CPUs. But with Intel's past two generations of Core microarchitectures featuring a "Special Edition" SKU, it seems reasonable that Intel would continue the tradition with Comet Lake-S.

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Aaron Klotz
Aaron Klotz
Contributing Writer

Aaron Klotz is a contributing writer for Tom’s Hardware, covering news related to computer hardware such as CPUs, and graphics cards.

10 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Co BIY
    14nm still has a few tricks left!
    Reply
  • Gurg
    A simple explanation is that now that the chips have been in production for a while the process has been refined, newer equipment with tighter tolerances is available and has been purchased in preparation for move to smaller nodes (10nm or lower) thus improving both yields and performance. Its common that the performance of the last chips in a run are of much higher performance level than the start. Quite probably it now is significant enough to allow for a different new SKU. Its not binning, its overall higher quality chips being produced with significantly tighter tolerance equipment and processes resulting in mid to high 90% yields.
    Reply
  • MasterMadBones
    Gurg said:
    A simple explanation is that now that the chips have been in production for a while the process has been refined, newer equipment with tighter tolerances is available and has been purchased in preparation for move to smaller nodes (10nm or lower) thus improving both yields and performance. Its common that the performance of the last chips in a run are of much higher performance level than the start. Quite probably it now is significant enough to allow for a different new SKU. Its not binning, its overall higher quality chips being produced with significantly tighter tolerance equipment and processes resulting in mid to high 90% yields.
    The question for me is not how but why. With Rocket Lake around the corner, this looks like a pointless product. A 10900KS will undoubtedly be worse for gaming than the 11900K and for production workloads it will have no chance to compete with the 5900X.
    Reply
  • Gurg
    MasterMadBones said:
    The question for me is not how but why. With Rocket Lake around the corner, this looks like a pointless product. A 10900KS will undoubtedly be worse for gaming than the 11900K and for production workloads it will have no chance to compete with the 5900X.
    WHY NOT!If a 10900k OCs to 5.3 perhaps the 10900KS will be the first production CPU to OC to 5.5+ghz using consumer AIO cooling and Z490 MB. How much more does it cost to add an "S" or 10900KS sticker to designate these CPUS? If additional performance is there, it will help sell and market the final production runs of these CPUs until the fabs are switched over to all 11900k.
    Reply
  • Co BIY
    Why ?

    Because they are selling everything they can make !

    And every sale made now is money on the books and a sale AMD and Apple (also TSMC) don't have a chance at later.

    for production workloads it will have no chance to compete with the 5900X.

    It'll be more capable than something you can't get.

    At the rate this year is going it may be the best graphics driving platform available for purchase new in many outlets for a while.
    Reply
  • VforV
    Co BIY said:

    It'll be more capable than something you can't get.
    You guys do know that Zen3 CPUs are not in the same basket as RX 6000s GPUs right?

    Availability is not the same between these 2 products everywhere in the world. Although generally the RX 6000s are everywhere in the world as hard to get or as unavailable, for Zen3 is not the same. A lot of places have them in stock, even if in low quantities and had the from the start.

    Multiple countries in EU had them from day 1 and was not an issue to buy any of the Zen3 CPUs, some being constantly in stock, others every other week.

    US is not the entire world, just so you know. There are more places (countries) where these are available, than not available.

    I could have bought Zen3 since launch almost every day, so Intel is still irrelevant to me and will be until Alder Lake at least...
    Reply
  • Conahl
    for most i know, intel over all is irrelevant, zen is the better over all cpu, and some of them are just tired of intels BS over the last few years.
    Reply
  • Redneck5439
    VforV said:
    You guys do know that Zen3 CPUs are not in the same basket as RX 6000s GPUs right?

    Availability is not the same between these 2 products everywhere in the world. Although generally the RX 6000s are everywhere in the world as hard to get or as unavailable, for Zen3 is not the same. A lot of places have them in stock, even if in low quantities and had the from the start.

    Multiple countries in EU had them from day 1 and was not an issue to buy any of the Zen3 CPUs, some being constantly in stock, others every other week.

    US is not the entire world, just so you know. There are more places (countries) where these are available, than not available.

    I could have bought Zen3 since launch almost every day, so Intel is still irrelevant to me and will be until Alder Lake at least...

    It took a little bit of time, but I was able to connect with a Ryzen 9 5900X, and at MSRP - screw the scalpers. It takes time, and it isn't easy but you can connect with even the hardest to get hardware. If memory serves Intel has also had recent supply issues and some of their processors were not easy to find several months after launch. In this global economy, with the shortages and complications caused by Covid-19 the 11900K will be all but impossible to find after launch as well. We have seen it with Ryzen 5000, RX 6000, and Nvidia 3000, and it will continue with the 10900KS and 11900K. I doubt they will make many of the 10900KS to begin with and they will sell out quickly (Intel fans can't help themselves they will buy anything they release even if it sits in a position of meaninglessness). The 11900Ks will sell out on launch day and just like Ryzen 5000 will be hard to connect with and widely only available through scalpers. Covid-19 has made production and inventory challenging and demand for new electronics is the highest its been in decades with millions stuck home either laid off by the pandemic or working from home. Everyone seems to want to upgrade their computers, gaming consoles, and phones either out of boredom or needing better equipment as they have to work out of the house now.
    Reply
  • Redneck5439
    Co BIY said:
    Why ?

    Because they are selling everything they can make !

    And every sale made now is money on the books and a sale AMD and Apple (also TSMC) don't have a chance at later.



    It'll be more capable than something you can't get.

    At the rate this year is going it may be the best graphics driving platform available for purchase new in many outlets for a while.

    For some reason Intel fans will buy anything they release even if it is totally meaningless. I have no idea why, but I have no idea why a lot of things have happened in the last few years... Why would anyone think that Trump was actually intelligent when he told the universities he attended if they released his transcripts he would sue them... If he's so smart and got good grades it makes no sense, especially for someone who brags about everything... Common sense says he doesn't want people to see he barely scraped by with crap grades and his family money bought his degree. Trump says he's smart and his followers believe him based on no facts... In the same respect Intel fans buy anything Intel releases based on the same exact mental outlook... Intel says its good so it has to be and I need to buy it because Intel told me to buy it. I hate being political, but its the best analogy I could come up with.

    The 10900KS makes no sense when common sense should dictate that the 11900K will destroy it in single core performance and its release is just around the corner, and no matter how high you overclock the 10900KS your not going to change its IPC or core count so it will always be destroyed by the Ryzen 9 5900X in multi-core workloads. The 10900KS will not be able to compete against Intel's own 11900K (basically releasing in the same quarter) in single core and will be absolutely decimated in multi-core workloads by its main competitor (R9 5900X). Its a meaningless processor that makes no sense other than Intel says its good so everyone be good fanatics and buy it. Intel's earning reports clearly show that even though their very best was outright dominated by Zen 3 Intel still made more money than AMD did.

    As meaningless as I think the 11900K will be it at least has a purpose, it may be able to regain the "gaming crown". From early benchmarks I'm not overly impressed with the 11900K as in single core benchmarks it matches my 5900X in some benchmarks, outperforms it in a couple not really reliable benchmarks (ones that most take with a grain of salt- CPU-Z benchmark, ect...) and gets beaten by my 5900X in more intensive longer running benchmarks. Only time will tell as the leaks we have to go on may be engineering samples, however a lot of what I have seen is showing clock speeds on the 11900K of 5.3Ghz which will more than likely be the boost frequency of the retail components. The 11900K may retake the "gaming crown" but from what I have seen Zen 3 still has an IPC advantage. The 11900K has to run at 5.3Ghz to compete against Zen 3 parts running around 300Mhz slower (5Ghz). So we have Intel 11th gen matching the single core performance of Zen 3 (relying on simple brute force clock speed, higher power utilization and higher thermal issues), while being absolutely destroyed by Zen 3 in multi-core performance. Still if 11900K outperforms Zen 3 by 2 -5% in single core tasks / gaming it is still relevant, it may only get 5FPS better performance in gaming but it can at the very least claim that and is therefore relevant. The 10900KS won't be able to claim single core or multi core advantages and is really just a meaningless release to fleece money from its loyal fans.
    Reply
  • Redneck5439
    Co BIY said:
    14nm still has a few tricks left!

    Like the old saying goes "you have to give the devil his due". I think everyone has to admit it has been nothing short of amazing what Intel has been able to do while still being stuck on 14nm.
    Reply