Intel welcomes memory apocalypse with Xeon workstation refresh

Intel's workstation lineup is getting a much-needed refresh with the launch of its Xeon 600-series processors, boasting up to 86 cores and clocks topping 4.9 GHz. Chipzilla's timing couldn't be worse.

The memory-heavy workstation processors, which are based on last year’s Xeon 6700P series, arrive amid a supply chain crunch that has seen memory prices skyrocket. Even a modest kit of DDR5 RDIMMs (8x 32GB) will set you back more than $4,000. That's up from around $1,500 just six months ago.

At the same time, extreme demand for Intel's datacenter class CPUs, which are commonly deployed in GPU servers, has seen the chipmaker deprioritize its desktop and mobile processors to free up foundry capacity.

In spite of the macroeconomic headwinds, Intel's Xeon 600 workstation processors signal a return not just to the workstation arena, but in some respects, the high-end ...