Intel discontinues eighth-generation Coffee Lake desktop CPUs

Intel has announced that it is discontinuing its eighth-generation Coffee Lake CPU lineup. That includes the discontinuation of the flagship Core i7-8700K processor. In all, Intel has dropped the ax on 31 desktop parts and a trio of mobile CPUs.

Intel's eighth-generation parts launched in 2017 and are falling by the wayside as the 10th generation Comet Lake processor family has debuted. When Intel launched its eighth-generation line, the processors were its response to the AMD Ryzen processors.

Intel hadn't been particularly innovative with its processor line until AMD launched the Ryzen parts. The Core i7-8700K processor had six cores and 12 threads marking the first major core increase in nearly a decade. The discontinuation program for the eighth generation line started on June 1.

Despite the Product Change Notifications outlining the death of the eighth generation line, Intel will continue to take orders for the processors until December 18 with the last batch of eighth-generation processors shipping on June 4, 2021. Intel says that the line is being discontinued due to demand for those processors being shifted to other Intel parts. Specifically, the new 10th generation Comet Lake line has better specifications at lower price points.

Anyone who currently owns a computer with an eight-generation Intel part inside will maintain their warranty, and product support will continue. Odds are these parts will still be available on the market even after they're officially discontinued. The Core i7-8700K was the part that helped Intel to beat AMD Ryzen sales back in 2018.