94 PCWorld JULY 2019FEATURE PCIE 4.0: EVERY THING YOU NEED TO KNOW
WHAT ABOUT PCIE 5.0?
Confusing the news around PCIe 4.0 was
the seemingly simultaneous release of the
PCIe 5.0 spec (go.pcworld.com/pci5),
finalized by the PCI SIG. The confusion is
somewhat false, because announcing a
spec doesn’t mean the hardware is
available. The PCIe 4.0 spec was finalized
in 2017, and now, about two years later,
we have the first PCIe 4.0 hardware. We’re
likely to see the same lag between final
specifications and released hardware for
PCIe 5.0.INTEL DOESN’T HAVE
PCIE 4.0 YET
The only thing that could usher in PCIe 5.0
faster than expected is if Intel or Nvidia
decided to accelerate its adoption to throw
some mud on AMD. Officially, however,
Intel hasn’t even announced any plans toimplement PCIe 4.0, let alone PCIe 5.0. Its
current products remain rooted in PCIe 3.0.PCIE 4.0 WILL QUIETLY
BRING MORE SPEED
The move to PCIe 4.0 is, overall, a good move
for the PC, removing a bottleneck for ever-
faster components down the road. Just
remember that these interface ships are hard
to turn. The PCIe 4.0 interface, and parts that
can take advantage of it, are just beginning to
come out.
So while we wouldn’t say no to PCIe 4.0
in a new system or build—we’d also have to
seriously weigh whether it makes sense to
pay extra cash for the feature. For example,
does it make sense to pay $250 for a PCIe
4.0-based X570 motherboard, or save $100
and buy a PCIe 3.0-based X470
motherboard instead?
Ultimately, that’s the user’s choice.It’s taken almost
two years to see
our first PCIe 4.0
hardware. You’ll
likely see a similar
time frame for PCIe
5.0.