I've been browsing eBay for parts for my new PC build and found several Intel Engineering Sample (ES) CPUs at seemingly great prices. From what I've gathered, these ES CPUs are pre-release versions sent to manufacturers for compatibility testing. However, I've read some warnings about potential risks when using them with standard production motherboards. I'm curious if anyone here has experience with ES CPUs. Are they a good deal, or should I steer clear?
1 Answer
I'd advise against going for an ES CPU. There's a lot of uncertainty with them and you might end up with compatibility issues.
Just to be fair, those comments were mostly about server CPUs from years back. For desktop ES samples, they can work well, but there's still a chance, around 10%, that they might have problems. Just be cautious with the high-end ones like the 14900 or 13900.