Intel continues to include built-in graphics in premium CPUs to enhance performance and simplify user experience.
Intel continues to include built-in graphics in premium CPUs to enhance performance and simplify user experience.
From the die analysis of mainstream i9-9900k chips, it appears a significant portion is dedicated to onboard graphics. The estimated GPU usage ranges between 20-25% of the overall chip area. This design choice may reflect industry trends, as many buyers of i5, i7, and i9 models likely won’t rely on built-in graphics. Intel might be avoiding this approach to cut costs and improve manufacturing efficiency, particularly given challenges with 10nm production. The competition from AMD could also influence such decisions.
These are high-performance processors: Intel i5, i7, and i9 models running at top speeds.
These items are unrelated to what the original poster said. They are clearly faulty components where the integrated graphics chip isn't working while the actual die matches their normal counterparts. It seems the iGPU consumes up to 40% of the 9900K chip area, and although more CPU cores could be added, the overall design would need significant changes. As we understand, Ring Bus becomes impractical beyond ten cores, which is why high-end processors like the i9 10980XE use Mesh instead. Various thermal and power management adjustments are made to maintain performance, so simply swapping in more processing power isn't straightforward. The iGPU still offers value, such as hardware acceleration via QuickSync or acting as a display adapter when necessary.
On the other end are the top AM4 boards (especially µATX) that come with 3-4 video connectors, but very few people will pair them with an APU... Brainf... I’d appreciate it if they would cut down on these connectors—or find a way to make them work with any graphics card, so you don’t have to cram three or more at the bracket. As far as I know, Intel plans to make the iGPU compatible with discrete GPUs for extra performance in DirectX 12/Vulkan—something we saw with AMD APUs, and maybe more top-nodge APUs will appear when AMD follows suit.