The Spectre and Meltdown flaws afflicting almost all personal computers and servers splashed across the tech publication headlines in early 2018. Now we are seeing the first processors from Intel that close the vulnerabilities by design.
Until now, software patches and firmware updates - skipped by most users - have been required to shut out Spectre and Meltdown attacks. The new processors eliminate these vulnerabilities.
At this writing, the least expensive of the new processors is the i7-9700K, part of the Coffe Lake Refresh line or 9th Gen Core. Sold separately, it is about $410. Computers with the new chip start at around $530, for example, from PortaTech.
For more information, see: Intel’s New Core and Xeon W-3175X Processors: Spectre and Meltdown Security Update by Anton Shilov.