Could this be the least exciting Core i7 chip of all time? Gather round, folks, these are exciting times - Intel has recently introduced cutting-edge desktop processors based on its fifth-generation Core architecture, codenamed Broadwell. Only, the excitement never really materialised, and the new chips are at risk of fading into obscurity with barely a whimper.

First, a little refresher. Intel microarchitectures are typically delivered on a tick-tock cadence, with the tick primarily representing a die shrink and the tock being used to insinuate a major architecture revamp. Going back through recent generations, we had the 2011 fan-favourite Sandy Bridge (32nm, tock), followed by Ivy Bridge in 2012 (22nm, tick) and then Haswell in 2013 (22nm, tock).

Whatever happened to a 2014 release? That's a good question. Broadwell, a 14nm die shrink and minor refresh of Haswell, is late to the party. Mobile chips based on the fifth-generation architecture did actually make their debut toward the end of last year, but desktop parts - the ones enthusiasts care about - weren't announced until June 2015, a full two years after the launch of the venerable Core i7-4770K.