Holy crap, "old" Sandy Bridge CPUs are still expensive as hell!

[AnitaPeterson]

While visiting the computer stores in my area, I found a brand-new mATX Socket 1155 motherboard for $40.

I figured out it's a good deal, but then I looked at the prices for Socket 1155 (Sandy/Ivy Bridge) CPUs... by all the Old Gods, they are expensive as hell!

I mean, the cheapest Pentium G630 is still around $50 on ebay, and that's a really basic processor... can't find even an i3 for less than $100.

*Edit* That's in Canadian dollars, mind you. We used to have parity with the US dollar, but not anymore. My bad, I forgot to mention it.

Is this because of scarcity (being an older generation and all), or do Intel chips really retain their value over time? O_O

 

[NTMBK]

It's probably because performance hasn't significantly improved since then. If they're not significantly slower, no reason for them to be significantly cheaper.

 

[Insomniator]

To add to that, a drop in CPU upgrade can make a huge difference for an easy amount of work compared to a more expensive platform upgrade. Most users don't care about M.2 slots or extra PCI lanes but bringing some old system up to a quad from a dual core chip can be a huge upgrade.

Even if you can get a new gen chip with better performance for the same price... who the hell wants to replace every component when all you need is a little more CPU oomph.

 

[SlowSpyder]

Old used phenom II's also are quite pricey, the hexcores in particular.

 

[Yuriman]

The age of CPUs depreciating much is pretty much over.

 

[PingSpike]

Seemed like you could get bare i5 2500 for $100 if you looked on ebay, but that was a recent low.

New Intel chips just aren't that much faster and since a new i5 costs close to $200 and isn't twice as good its not a surprise the demand hasn't gone down. And if you already have a z77 board and DDR3 and are upgrading there's even less reason to go new since the value proposition is even worse.

It used to be upgrading an old platform was kind of dumb. But since all Intel has released is Snoozewell and Naplake there's a lot more bang for the buck upgrading an old platform. People say you get access to new chipset features but I don't see it myself. Same old 16x PCI-e lanes, barely any more SATA3 slots, USB3 was already native on z77, USB3.1...meh. Improved IGP? Meh for me, I guess its nice if you run a laptop. No more cores, meh IPC gains and frankly...new hardware bugs.

 

[ShintaiDK]

An i5 2500K at 200$ is certainly not worth it. Neither are i3s above 100$ or 50$ Pentiums.

Seems some people are too nostalgic about SB performance.

 

[lehtv]

^ Agreed. I don't understand why anyone would buy a 4 generations old processor for so much money. Even users who want to upgrade to a faster LGA1155 CPU should be looking at Ivy Bridge instead. Even though Intel processor performance hasn't improved all that much, it's still improved enough to have a significant impact on pricing, and on top of that there are bigger improvements in perf/watt, IGP performance and features. IMO socket compatibility alone is a big factor.

 

[ShintaiDK]

Yep. One example between 2500K and 6600K.
http://anandtech.com/bench/product/288?vs=1544

 

[poofyhairguy]

An i5 2500K at 200$ is certainly not worth it.

That isn't really the price though. On Ebay most 2500k go for $110-$160.

Seems some people are too nostalgic about SB performance.

Or maybe SB is still working fine for them.

I bought my 2500k in 2012 for $180 on eBay. Last year I bought a 2600k (new in box) for $180 on eBay. This same CPU went for $320+ in 2012.

If I would have sold the 2500K for $110 (I didn't but that is a low price) I could have gotten a significant upgrade (near i5 6600K with the right RAM and OC) for around $70. I couldn't even get the DDR4 RAM I need for the 6600K Skylake platform upgrade for that much.

People aren't nostalgic about SB, you are nostalgic about stuff you stopped using. Many of us use SB daily, and even for gaming thanks to Directx 12 it has some life left.

^ Agreed. I don't understand why anyone would buy a 4 generations old processor for so much money. Even users who want to upgrade to a faster LGA1155 CPU should be looking at Ivy Bridge instead.

Many now accept that Ivy is a worse OCer than Sandy, and most people buying K chips plan to OC. Plus Ivy is a little more (for a worse OCer).

Honestly people have to run to reasoning like 'but the new stuff is much cooler/uses less power" because they can't say "the new stuff is 50% faster" like we could back when Intel generations were actual leaps.

 

[myocardia]

I wouldn't call a 3.3 Ghz i5 that wasn't/can't be overclocked for less than $100 Buy It Now price including free shipping, expensive. Just search for SR00T on ebay. BTW, there are zero letter Os in SR00T.

 

[Yuriman]

@poofyhairguy, I've looked at 2600K's on eBay as an upgrade for my 3570K, but the idea of moving back to PCIe 2.0 and regressing significantly in performance per watt is a tough sell. For some (not me), the iGPU might be a factor too (quicksync?). I really do consider the amount of power my PC uses, and therefore the heat/noise it generates, to affect the quality of my computing experience, and the truth is that I don't really need the extra performance, so in some respects, a 2600K is a step backward.

I'd buy into the idea that the reason the software market isn't demanding exponentially more CPU power as time goes on is that CPU performance growth isn't there, but because software needs haven't increased a ton, I see little reason to buy something faster at the expense of other tangible factors. It's a terrible feedback loop, eh?

If left the option of swapping out for a Z97/Haswell i3 for nothing, I'd be tempted. I'd love to have an M.2 slot on my board. The cost of replacing my RAM is a barrier-to-entry for Skylake, but I'd say Skylake i3's are probably the sweet-spot for my needs right now otherwise.

 

[waltchan]

While visiting the computer stores in my area, I found a brand-new mATX Socket 1155 motherboard for $40.

I figured out it's a good deal, but then I looked at the prices for Socket 1155 (Sandy/Ivy Bridge) CPUs... by all the Old Gods, they are expensive as hell!

I mean, the cheapest Pentium G630 is still around $50 on ebay, and that's a really basic processor... can't find even an i3 for less than $100.

Is this because of scarcity (being an older generation and all), or do Intel chips really retain their value over time? O_O

I don't agree with your statement that Sandy Bridges are still selling high on eBay. They're depreciating pretty harshly right now and will reach pocket-change of $5 price in less than 5 years later. If you use the BID format instead of BUY-IT-NOW, price for Pentium G630 is actually only $25 shipped. I just recently sold one for $25 shipped on eBay. Many of them sold for $25. If you don't see one, it's because buyers bought them all. Click "recently sold listing."

i3-2130 3.4GHz (the fastest) is pretty decent deal right now selling between $55 and $60 shipped if you BID and WIN. The next upgrade with i3-3250 (the fastest again but with Ivy Bridge) jumps up to $120 shipped, double the price.

The least-expensive LGA1155 processor is Celeron G460, which sells for less than $15 shipped many times. If you don't see one, again, buyers bought them all fast, and you need to wait. This is the real market price now. Some users here I know disagree with me that no one buys worthless CPUs anymore. ABSOLUTELY NOT TRUE AT ALL. More middle-class Americans are buying $10 CPUs than the new LGA1150 Haswells.

 

[NTMBK]

More middle-class Americans are buying $10 CPUs than the new LGA1150 Haswells.

Either cite some genuine market research that demonstrates this, or stop making stuff up.

 

[LTC8K6]

While visiting the computer stores in my area, I found a brand-new mATX Socket 1155 motherboard for $40.

I figured out it's a good deal, but then I looked at the prices for Socket 1155 (Sandy/Ivy Bridge) CPUs... by all the Old Gods, they are expensive as hell!

I mean, the cheapest Pentium G630 is still around $50 on ebay, and that's a really basic processor... can't find even an i3 for less than $100.

Is this because of scarcity (being an older generation and all), or do Intel chips really retain their value over time? O_O

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128873

$10 more gets you an 1151 board...

 

[waltchan]

Either cite some genuine market research that demonstrates this, or stop making stuff up.

I get outbid more with $10 CPUs than new Haswells, and bidders are made by middle-class Americans. That's real demand here.

 

[MrTeal]

Paying $120 for an i3-3250 is lunacy. You can find 4C/8T E3-1230's for that price.

 

[waltchan]

Paying $120 for an i3-3250 is lunacy. You can find 4C/8T E3-1230's for that price.

Actually, i3-3250's resale price can stay sky-high for years to come due to it being the fastest model, last for LGA1155 socket, AND supports Windows XP and Vista, which i3-4370 doesn't..

 

[poofyhairguy]

@poofyhairguy, I've looked at 2600K's on eBay as an upgrade for my 3570K, but the idea of moving back to PCIe 2.0 and regressing significantly in performance per watt is a tough sell.

I feel you. I mean not on the PCIe 2.0 point, from what I understand that makes also no difference. But I feel you on the heat point, I didn't mind that my 970 ran cooler than my 7970 Ghz when I did that "upgrade" last year. Seems like the natural upgrade is a 3770k, but you don't seem like you need it.

My reasoning to go 2600K over 3770k was threefold:

1. I already had a badass HSF so its not like the extra watts used meant I bought different hardware.

2. My mobo is z68 not z87, and I have heard problems of some people using Ivy on older mobos.

3. (main one) I knew if I got a 3770k and it didn't overclock well I would blame it on the tim situation and I would force myself to delid (and maybe ruin the CPU) in a vain attempt to get a better OC. With a 2600K there is no option that might make me ruin the CPU (well other than OCing) so I felt that was the safer play.



Honestly if I was doing it again today I would probably do a half-platform upgrade. Haswell seems to be almost exactly as fast as Skylake, as the biggest jump IPC since Sandy was Ivy to Haswell. Plus z97 mobos are getting really cheap as they get cleared out and the 4770K can be found for $100 less than the 6700K. I could reuse the RAM, which saves almost another $100, and I could get most of the platform benefits that Sandy lacks. That is easily the best upgrade value right now for someone with Sandy (and some good/fast DDR3 RAM), probably over $250 cheaper than a Skylake 6700k platform upgrade when you add up the savings. That is almost a 390 GPU right there.

I might buy a z97 mobo and just sit on it until the 4770K gets REALLY cheap.

 

[LTC8K6]

Actually, i3-3250's resale price can stay sky-high for years to come due to it being the highest-end model, last for LGA1155 socket, AND supports Windows XP and Vista, which i3-4370 doesn't..

But the 3245 has HD4000, vs the 3250 with only HD2500...

 

[waltchan]

But the 3245 has HD4000, vs the 3250 with only HD2500...

Both of them will stay over $100 for a few years. i3-3245 is most-expensive here. Don't mess with these two, trust me. Think Sandy Bridge first, i3-2130 or i3-2125, which is half the price and still depreciating fast.

 

[master_shake_]

But the 3245 has HD4000, vs the 3250 with only HD2500...

you know what's great about that?

nothing.

they're both terrible.

and of you're really lucky it won't work anyway.

https://communities.intel.com/thread/39881?start=270&tstart=0

19 pages, 3 years, no solutions.

 

[mrblotto]

dang I've got a couple or 3 i7-2600's I should sell then. Doesn't do me any good sitting around doing nothing I reckon

 

[LTC8K6]

you know what's great about that?

nothing.

they're both terrible.

and of you're really lucky it won't work anyway.

https://communities.intel.com/thread/39881?start=270&tstart=0

19 pages, 3 years, no solutions.

When it works, HD4000 kills HD2500.

I have never had a problem with HD2500 or HD4600 on any of my Win10 builds.

 

[waltchan]

dang I've got a couple or 3 i7-2600's I should sell then. Doesn't do me any good sitting around doing nothing I reckon

The time to sell is NOW. After Skylake comes out, all of Sandy Bridge CPUs have become more cheaper than I thought. Price won't stop dropping until it reaches $25 five years later when it will stabilize.