Intel offering downloadable hardware upgrades for low end chips.

Damn_Smooth · Aug 15, 2011

https://retailupgrades.intel.com/Page.aspx?Name=Benefits

Only for the I3 2312m, I3 2102 and Pentium G622

With these upgrades, customers will enjoy:

Better performance for photo, video, and music tasks.
Better responsiveness for everyday PC activities.
Better responsiveness for PC productivity at work or at home.

15th Warlock · Aug 15, 2011

Damn_Smooth said:
https://retailupgrades.intel.com/Page.aspx?Name=Benefits

Only for the I3 2312m, I3 2102 and Pentium G622

WTF?

What has the tech industry come to? DLC for CPUs?? :shadedshu :wtf:

Damn_Smooth · Aug 15, 2011

15th Warlock said:
WTF?

What has the tech industry come to? DLC for CPUs?? :shadedshu

You read my mind.

xBruce88x · Aug 15, 2011

ah hah! so you can unlock some features of an intel cpu... i wonder is someone will mod this to unlock features of others (i5 2500k to i7 2600k?)

hat · Aug 15, 2011

Looks like Intel learned something from AMD, and is charging extra for it. How long until it's hacked?

Wile E · Aug 15, 2011

This is old news. It's somewhere in the new archives. I'll see if I can dig it up.

Wile E · Aug 15, 2011

Found it:

http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=131311

qubit · Aug 15, 2011

Yup, hardware DLC is exactly what this is and not a good thing for the consumer.

Intel announced this about a year ago or more and there was a lot of discussion about it on TPU. It was generally agreed by most people that this is a Bad Thing, as Intel are actually offering you less for more money.

We are already seeing this trend in DLC for gaming, where they release content that should be in the original game as an "extra", so there's evidence right there.

EDIT: I see that Wile E found the thread. Nice one.

Damn_Smooth · Aug 15, 2011

Wile E said:
This is old news. It's somewhere in the new archives. I'll see if I can dig it up.

I did a search before I posted but it was new news to me. I don't know what keywords you need to use to find it.

Wile E · Aug 15, 2011

Yep, price is the sole determining factor in whether this is a good deal or not. If the upgrade cost around the same amount it would have cost to get the better chip in the first place, then it's an OK deal.

If the upgrade takes the total cost to something significantly higher than the cost of buying the upgraded chip in the first place, then this is a total ripoff.

qubit · Aug 15, 2011

Wile E said:
Yep, price is the sole determining factor in whether this is a good deal or not. If the upgrade cost around the same amount it would have cost to get the better chip in the first place, then it's an OK deal.

If the upgrade takes the total cost to something significantly higher than the cost of buying the upgraded chip in the first place, then this is a total ripoff.

Yeah, that's one of the problems with it. How do you know how much you should be paying for it? What do you have to compare against? With an ambiguity like that, you can be sure that Intel are gonna make you pay more for less.

Also, you can just imagine all the cracks that will come out to unlock these features for free...

Wile E · Aug 15, 2011

qubit said:
Yeah, that's one of the problems with it. How do you know how much you should be paying for it? What do you have to compare against? With an ambiguity like that, you can be sure that Intel are gonna make you pay more for less.

You tell by comparing the "upgraded" model's performance to what else is available in the same generation. Pretty simple, really.

And all cpu performance/price ratios are largely ambiguous, and set by supply, demand and what they can get away with. AMD is no different in this.

Damn_Smooth · Aug 15, 2011

Wile E said:
Found it:

http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=131311

Thanks for finding that link.

These are different chips though, so this is the second time Intel has done this. I wasn't around for that thread and I had no idea that this had ever happened before.

Wile E · Aug 15, 2011

Can anyone find how much the upgrade cards cost now?

RejZoR · Aug 15, 2011

It's terrible idea that i hope it will die soon. We don't need god damn DLC's for hardware. I've seen them in games and in 3/4 of the time they are complete rip off. In a small fraction of games i found them to be actually well placed and designed. Namely Defense Grid and Killing Floor. In first one they were free and those that were payable were dirty cheap wher ein second one they were optional without hindering the original game. Do you think Intel will ever release a free DLC in such way? I doubt it...

Damn_Smooth · Aug 15, 2011

Wile E said:
Can anyone find how much the upgrade cards cost now?

As far as I can find on google, it's still $50. I can't find one for sale though.

Wile E · Aug 15, 2011

Yeah, still a ripoff if it's $50.

trt740 · Aug 15, 2011

intel unreal

Mussels · Aug 15, 2011

you guys suck, you fail to realise the key element.

people like us are just gunna hack the damn unlock somehow, and get free performance boosts. helllll yeah.

xBruce88x · Aug 15, 2011

lol i already ripped apart the installer using 7zip just to see what's inside

Red_Machine · Aug 15, 2011

What'll likely happen is it'll be an extra cost option on OEM websites. Cheaper than upgrading the CPU itself, but still faaaar too expensive.

newtekie1 · Aug 15, 2011

Wile E said:
Yeah, still a ripoff if it's $50.

Not really when you factor in the cost of bringing the computer into a computer shop and having the CPU swapped out. These upgrades aren't for people like use that know how to swap out processors, they are for people that have to call a computer tech just to upgrade the RAM.

xBruce88x · Aug 16, 2011

the ironic thing,... they'd probably take it to the shop to have the guy run the software too..

qubit · Aug 16, 2011

xBruce88x said:
the ironic thing,... they'd probably take it to the shop to have the guy run the software too..

For which there would be a pricey "admin" charge. :laugh:

cadaveca · Aug 16, 2011

Mussels said:
people like us are just gunna hack the damn unlock somehow

You'll have to hack Intel servers first. I think hacking Gabe Newell's STEAM account would be easier. Same technology is probably employed as protection.

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Intel offering downloadable hardware upgrades for low end chips.

Damn_Smooth

15th Warlock

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