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Generally speaking, the idea that the average person uses more than 4 cores is insane. Even as a power user/dev I can count the times when I needed more than 4

Generally speaking, the idea that the average person uses more than 4 cores is insane. Even as a power user/dev I can count the times when I needed more than 4 cores on one hand. All the benchmarks that these CPUs are evaluated by, test either games, or run the same crazy stuff like fluid simulations that OPs article complains about. Hardware reviewers need a reality check.

Iwan-Zotow 4y ago
good porno will saturate all available cores
deleted 4y ago
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jl6 4y ago
Eh, a modern desktop can have a lot of concurrent processes running. A browser, one process per tab, software updates continually spawning in the background… Though I do agree that the benefits of high core count CPUs are oversold as far as most users are concerned.
- Dylan16807 4y ago
  Many processes yes, but background tasks don't need much power and one core has a lot of power. So one core should be plenty for all background tasks combined.
eyegor 4y ago
I hate to break it to you, but outside of gaming, fluid sim, and battery life / power draw tests, nothing else matters for modern chips. Schmucks only need the kind of horsepower a phone is capable of, or want to know how long it will last. The only people who care about performance either really care because more perf = more dollars (fluid sim, hft, etc.) or they're gamers.
- brookst 4y ago
  I use CAD for a hobby. My 5950x has 16 cores and I desperately wish I could afford a 64 core desktop because each model takes 60 - 240 seconds to compute. That’s a pain when it takes multiple iterations to get a good design, and it leads to more complicated programming to offer quick vs detailed model creation, and that complexity leads to bugs. So yeah I care, and not for more dollars.
- throwaway2037 4y ago
  Mostly, I agree with your post. Related: I find browsing the web on an older phone is awful. A great example: Google Maps is one of the most intensive web apps that I use. After each phone upgrade (~3years), it a huge leap forward in performance. I assume this can be explained by improved WiFi, CPU clock/cores/cache, and main memory. What is your guess about which part of the upgrade is most impactful? (Let's assume the version of Chrome is roughly equivalent between new and old phone.) My guess: It is mostly due to improved CPU (clock/cores/cache).
- torginus 4y ago
  While I kind of agree with you, anecdotally the things people actually do are still slow. Opening up a large project in IntelliJ or browsing through Reddit is anything but smooth for me, even though I have a pretty recent CPU.
fomine3 4y ago
Games are really really popular application
- torginus 4y ago
  The thing about games is they're almost always GPU limited unless you are chasing after super high framerates. Games consoles were typically the target for games and with the exception of the latest gen stuff, all of them used to have weak CPUs.
gpderetta 4y ago
I'm a C++ dev. I'll use as many cores as I can get for the build! Even my IDE can consume all the cores just by opening some files.

Iwan-Zotow 4y ago

good porno will saturate all available cores

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

jl6 4y ago

Eh, a modern desktop can have a lot of concurrent processes running. A browser, one process per tab, software updates continually spawning in the background… Though I do agree that the benefits of high core count CPUs are oversold as far as most users are concerned.

Dylan16807 4y ago
Many processes yes, but background tasks don't need much power and one core has a lot of power. So one core should be plenty for all background tasks combined.

eyegor 4y ago

I hate to break it to you, but outside of gaming, fluid sim, and battery life / power draw tests, nothing else matters for modern chips. Schmucks only need the kind of horsepower a phone is capable of, or want to know how long it will last. The only people who care about performance either really care because more perf = more dollars (fluid sim, hft, etc.) or they're gamers.

brookst 4y ago
I use CAD for a hobby. My 5950x has 16 cores and I desperately wish I could afford a 64 core desktop because each model takes 60 - 240 seconds to compute. That’s a pain when it takes multiple iterations to get a good design, and it leads to more complicated programming to offer quick vs detailed model creation, and that complexity leads to bugs. So yeah I care, and not for more dollars.
throwaway2037 4y ago
Mostly, I agree with your post. Related: I find browsing the web on an older phone is awful. A great example: Google Maps is one of the most intensive web apps that I use. After each phone upgrade (~3years), it a huge leap forward in performance. I assume this can be explained by improved WiFi, CPU clock/cores/cache, and main memory. What is your guess about which part of the upgrade is most impactful? (Let's assume the version of Chrome is roughly equivalent between new and old phone.) My guess: It is mostly due to improved CPU (clock/cores/cache).
torginus 4y ago
While I kind of agree with you, anecdotally the things people actually do are still slow. Opening up a large project in IntelliJ or browsing through Reddit is anything but smooth for me, even though I have a pretty recent CPU.

fomine3 4y ago

Games are really really popular application

torginus 4y ago
The thing about games is they're almost always GPU limited unless you are chasing after super high framerates. Games consoles were typically the target for games and with the exception of the latest gen stuff, all of them used to have weak CPUs.

gpderetta 4y ago

I'm a C++ dev. I'll use as many cores as I can get for the build! Even my IDE can consume all the cores just by opening some files.