Let's see if it can go toe to toe with apples m1 Pro
I have been around long enough to have seen all the limitations in the PC world. (Anybody here remember the gripes about the brand new processor, called a Pentium, that was actually slower than the 486 it was supposed to replace?)
First it was memory. Never had enough, it cost a fortune, and even if you could buy it, the processor wouldn't support more or the motherboard was full already.
Then, hard drives just couldn't keep up with needs. We were always offloading something to floppy to make a little room to get that new program installed.
The next processor was eagerly awaited and with no doubt that it was a vast improvement over the last.
GPUs? First none, then console graphics, then memory mapped images, crude accelerators and all the way up to ridiculously prices cards you can't even buy now.
To compile a Linux kernel used to take an hour on the hottest hardware I could buy. Now, it is finished before I return with another cup of coffee.
So, we come to today. I still like new hardware, having a loaded M1 Mini and a pair of Linux boxes with hot cores - one Intel and the other Amd. When the M1 SuperDuper ProExtreme Mini comes out, I will no doubt purchase one.
But...
In honest moments, even though I consider myself a power user, I doubt that I use ten percent of the capability of the machines I have now. Anything hotter, from any of the three, will just gain bragging rights and not need, Unless, of course some needed app appears that can actually use all the horsepower.
That being said, I have little doubt that I will yank the 4 core whatever-it-is out of my Intel tower and replace it with the new Alder Lake. Just because old nerds never die, they just fall asleep in the floor with parts scattered everywhere.