Update 07/11/17: We have now heard from Intel on this subject, and they provided this statement regarding the availability of the Pentium G4560 processor:
"We continue to offer the Intel Pentium SKU referenced. What you have observed on websites are possibly part of a normal demand fluctuation."
(The original post follows.)
Cannibalization of its Core i3 sales might have Intel quietly killing off its best value CPU, if unnamed sources in a DigiWorthy report (via TechPowerUp) can be believed.
Image credit: ComputerBase via DigiWorthy
Sound far-fetched? It seems at least plausible that Intel might consider some sort of CPU-related moves to maintain profit margins with Ryzen providing some very real competition after several years of Intel dominance. The popularity of the 2-core/4-thread Pentium G4560 – a (theoretically) ~$60 Kaby Lake part that provides a very nearly Core i3-level experience (some features are missing) is not at all surprising, and the current lack of availability and subsequently higher pricing (lowest in-stock price at around $80 at time of publication) suggests that something is up with this CPU.
Chart via PCPartPicker
A low of $78.89 for the CPU with an MSRP of $64 is about a $15 markup, but this price is just going to increase if no fresh stock hits the market as these sell out.
Now some editorial: Why would Intel introduce what is essentially a slightly hobbled Core i3 into the market at half the cost of their cheapest Core i3 to begin with? I enthusiastically endorsed this seemingly questionable business decision (along with all of the buyers of this often out-of-stock CPU) when it first hit the market a few months ago, and now – if rumors are to be believed – the company might just be killing it off. This would be a move reminiscent of Nintendo's recent NES Classic, which was apparently too popular for its $59.99 price tag (and scalpers worldwide rejoiced). Nintendo, of course, killed the NES Classic when it was at its height of popularity, perhaps as it was just not profitable enough to justify continued production? (And besides, a soon-to-be-$300-on-eBay SNES Classic was in the works.)
Might the Pentium G4560 be Intel's NES Classic? It seems a little too likely for comfort.
Intel has a budget part that
Intel has a budget part that people are buying too much of, so they have to limit production or discontinue it completely?
Yup, sounds about right. Thanks Intel!
Intel is afraid to be stuck
Intel is afraid to be stuck with huge inventory of unsellable chips once AMD low cost Zen hits the market.
Don’t worry I’m sure they
Don’t worry I’m sure they will figure out what to strip out of its replacement in the name of segmentation!
The Pentium is a weird chip.
The Pentium is a weird chip. No AVX or TSX but does have ECC support, where as the more expensive LGA1151 chips dont support ECC but have TSX ad AVX. Intels artificial segmentation is absurd.
Bets on it existing because
Bets on it existing because some Xeon part has a weird failure leaving a bunch of harvestable dies lying around, and now that issue has been resolved it no longer makes sense to deliberately butcher dies to make more?
Hopefully AMD releases
Hopefully AMD releases something good and cheap enough with Ryzen 3 to make Intel reconsider their low end strategy.
Before we see single CCX
Before we see single CCX Ryzen models in the market, or Zen based APUs, the G4560 has NO competition at all. That’s why Intel can limit it’s availability or even cancel it with little worries.
I should of purchased 3 to 6
I should of purchased 3 to 6 units of these Intel Pentium G4560 units when they first hit NewEgg shelves for $65 USD. I have one for myself, but recommend these to friends and family all the time. I was hoping that Intel would continue the trend, but I suppose it was too much to ask.
FYI: There are two major areas where the G4560 chip loses to the i3-7100: (1) integrated graphics performance being nerfed and (2) lack of Intel Optane support for all non-core Intel chips. The Optane incompatibility is the major issue that I personally care about.
*Sebastian* Thank you for this update.
Maybe they will on next
Maybe they will on next desktop platform. Top dog is rumored to be 6 core chip with 12 threads. So they might re-done their product segments… Plus the pressure from amd, now that they are on the game again.
You can still use optane as a
You can still use optane as a SSD. Just not a had accelerator..
Nvidia is hurting Intel in
Nvidia is hurting Intel in the datacenter market.
AMD is bringing competition to the desktop and server market after many years
Intel’s stock price was aiming at $45 for the last 3-4 years, but now it’s moving downward towards $33.
Letting a G4560 destroy profit margins would make Intel shareholders start wondering if their investment is really as secured as it was looking 1-2 years ago. Intel is thinking it’s shareholders here, not it’s customers. Considering that it was selling the same hi end quad cores for the last 3-4 years, I wonder if they really think about their customers at all.
To be fair all companies do stupid things(from a customer’s perspective) like this. Intel is just the last example.
We can all hope it will be
We can all hope it will be the last example, but I fear it is just the latest example.
Their shareholders would be
Their shareholders would be impressed if they released processors that made their customers want to replace machines early but alas this is what the end of Moore’s law looks like.
Lol picked one up a month ago
Lol picked one up a month ago for a budget build, glad i got in on it. Great little gaming pc for cheap..
its about damn time. only
its about damn time. only idiots gamed on them. you can multitask for shit with them.
its about damn time. only
its about damn time. only idiots gamed on them. you CAN’T multitask for shit with them.