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According to its latest Product Change Notification (PCN) document, Intel has decided it's time to retire its Skylake-X (SKL-X) processors, which debuted just two years ago. The move comes as Intel gears up to deliver its next-gen Core X-Series processors that it announced during its Computex keynote.

The entry-level Core i7-7800X hexa-core processor tended to the needs of users at the bottom of the spectrum while the the flagship i9-7980XE 18-core part was aimed at more demanding users. Skylake-X got its shine stolen by AMD's Ryzen Threadripper 2 desktop processors, though, which came with higher core counts at much more accessible pricing.

Model Status Cores / Threads Base Clock / Boost Clock Cache TDP RCP Core i9-7980XE End of Life 18 / 36 2.6 GHz / 4.4 GHz 24.75MB 165W $1979 - $1999 Core i9-7960X End of Life 16 / 32 2.8 GHz / 4.4 GHz 22MB 165W $1684 - $1699 Core i9-7940X End of Life 14 / 28 3.1 GHz / 4.4 GHz 19.25MB 165W $1387 - $1399 Core i9-7920X End of Life 12 / 24 2.9 GHz / 4.4 GHz 16.5MB 140W $1189 - $1199 Core i9-7900X End of Life 10 / 20 3.3 GHz / 4.5 GHz 13.75MB 140W $989 - $999 Core i7-7820X End of Life 8 / 16 3.6 GHz / 4.5 GHz 11MB 140W $589 - $599 Core i7-7800X End of Life 6 / 12 3.5 GHz / 4.0 GHz 8.25MB 140W $383 - $389

AMD's Ryzen processors have redefined our expectations for HEDT pricing, with the Threadripper models spurring significant price-per-core reductions across Intel's HEDT lineup. However, keeping with Intel's long-term practice, the company never responded with direct price cuts on existing models: Instead, the company released newer models with more attractive price points.

AMD's recently announced Ryzen 3000-series family that span up to 12 cores. We can expect Intel's new Core X-Series processors to come with pricing adjusted to attempt to fend off AMD's latest. But this time around Intel would likely have to adjust its HEDT lineup to take into account AMD's mainstream processors that will come with up to 12 cores for now, and a 16-core model undoubtedly coming soon.

Customers can place their last orders for what's left of the Skylake-X chips before December 27, with the final shipment going out on June 5, 2020. Intel's Skylake-X Refresh models (99xx series) have not been retired, and the next-gen Core X-Series arrives in the fall.