Which intel core i7 to choose. Iron experiment: older Core i3 versus younger Core i5 in games

Hello, dear subscribers of our blog. Today I will try to explain how the i3 processor differs from the i5. Surely many people are interested in why one Intel Core costs so much more than another, although you won’t immediately understand what the point is. In this article we will look at what kind of stone would be better suited for PC games and work tasks.

The comparison will be multi-stage and contain pivot tables. By the way, in the second part we will look at and also advise which one for certain tasks.

Separately, I would like to say that mobile processors we don’t mention it specifically - everything is much more complicated there, and besides, special attention is paid to the markings rather than to the numerical value of the chips and characteristics.

Difference between Coffee Lake and previous generations

The release of the 8th generation of Intel Core literally put the entire computer hardware market on edge. The difference between previous generations is colossal, and is expressed in the following figures:

As you can see, the usual concept has changed radically, as well as the technical characteristics. This was facilitated by the release of AMD Ryzen, which included 4 computing cores (Ryzen 3 1200) in the minimum configuration.

I'm glad that the built-in video remains, as do most proprietary technologies and instructions. Another thing is that the quality of graphics compared to Kaby Lake has not changed - still the same Intel UHD 630.

Difference between i3 and i5

First, let's look at the classic confrontation between processors, and then switch to more recent ones Coffee Lake. The confrontation scheme will include several points.

• Number of cores

The more physical cores, the more operations the chip performs per clock cycle. For i3 this indicator is 2, for i5 – 4, respectively.

For Coffee Lake the situation is as follows: both chips added 2 physical cores, but i5 is still the leader in this area.

• Turbo Boost

This technology allows you to significantly increase the CPU frequency in automatic mode only in cases where it is really necessary. In essence, this is a “lazy” version of overclocking by a multiplier, which is limited by the limitations of the platform, heat package and cooling. Only i5 has this mode, when i3 has fixed frequencies.

• Hyper-Threading

In processors, one physical core usually receives one stream of data, which is processed by this core. This function (i.e. HT) allows you to use 2 threads per core at once.

Many people mistakenly believe that virtual cores are almost identical to physical ones, but in fact the processor performs one operation not with one, but with two hands, to put it as simply and intelligibly as possible.

Second, third, fourth and even seventh generation i3 processors supported this function, but with the advent of Coffee Lake, the number of physical computing units increased from 2 to 4, and the need for the technology disappeared. Core i5s do not support the mode natively.

• Cache size

Hello, dear audience. In this article we will look at how the i5 processor differs from the i7. This is the second article in a series of comparisons. You can see the differences between i3 and i5 in. Here we will try to explain whether it makes sense to overpay for the top-of-the-line chip, although it is damn good in all respects. Interesting? Then let's go.

As in the previous article, tables, comparisons, a search for shortcomings (at least prices for the i7 for the average consumer), as well as other technological nuances will be used. The information is purely for informational purposes, but it will be very useful for beginners.

I would also like to note that we will consider chips different generations. Most relevant on at the moment– Kaby Lake and Coffee Lake, and they are interesting not only for their architecture, but also for their complete different characteristics. Wondering what the difference is between Core i5 and Core i7? Let's get started.

Comparison with Coffee Lake

The debut of the 8th generation of Intel chips caused a stir among the public, as the company finally gave users what they had long been asking for - more cores, more high frequencies and lower temperatures. However, we had to pay the price due to the complete incompatibility of the 1151v2 socket with the first generation 1151 platform.
The comparison table looks like this:

The number of cores increased by 1.5 times in both cases, while the i7 also received 12 virtual threads instead of the usual 8, as was the case in Kaby Lake. Did the chip make it best choice For computer games? Definitely.

Let's add to this the high power density per core, support for overclocking most chips in the series, up to 5 GHz, as well as an impressive amount of cache memory (2 MB for each core). But the i5 will give a light to everyone who does not expect outstanding results from the stone.

Which chip to choose for the motherboard?

I would like to say right away that the performance of systems on i5 and i7 will be very high. But I would still like to recommend the younger option, since most simply will not notice much of a difference in computing power when working with routine tasks. The top series available for socket 1151v2 is still chosen by enthusiasts and people who professionally work in multi-threaded applications.

Difference in kernels

Since the number of computational units for the i5 and i7 was always the same (if we do not consider the laptop assortment of CPUs), the comparison always fell short of listing the number of virtual threads. For the “middle” class, this indicator is equal to the size of the physical cores, while for the “flagship” their number is exactly 2 times higher.

Turbo Boost

And here again there is complete parity, since the technology is available to both the former and the latter. This is essentially a lazy overclocking mode, but its beauty is that the processor does not consume more than it needs, and only accelerates when performing complex computing tasks that require straining everything. computing power.

This takes into account the cooling system, the maximum permissible heat package, voltage and other “limiters” that can be neglected during manual overclocking. The second advantage of the technology is the fact that some cores can be run separately if the application cannot use more than 1 thread at a time.

In this article we will tell you about the differences between the families Intel processors Core i3, i5 and i7. If you have ever studied the technical characteristics of computers, then you have probably seen this numbering more than once. Let's explain what it means.

Intel Core i3, i5 and i7: what do the numbers mean?

You shouldn't think that the i3 is older than the i7, as it immediately comes to mind. Intel developed this naming scheme for its processors to categorize them based on performance. i3, i5 and i7 are the processor performance levels: what larger number, the faster the CPU. However, it is not at all necessary that a computer with an i3 processor was produced earlier than one with an i7 processor.

Depending on the number, processors have different purposes and, of course, belong to different price categories. So, since 2017, there is also Core i9, which is intended only for professional users (for example, IT companies, research institutes, data centers). Below we will show you which categories of users are suitable for each processor family.

The Core i3 series from Intel are entry-level processors for office workstations. They pull great simple applications and at the same time have a reasonable price.

The Core i3 is powerful enough to run most desktop applications. Therefore, it is primarily used in office PCs - for surfing the Internet, using email, text editing and working with office packages. I3 does not consume much power, so it is often used in laptops, which provides good performance with long battery life.

Historically, i3 processors have only come with two cores. Thanks to the Coffee Lake architecture, Intel also offers i3 processors with 4 cores.

Devices with an Intel Core i5 processor are equipped with good value price and performance. Therefore, such processors can often be seen in home computers.

The Core i5 provides plenty of power for gaming, video editing, or other resource-intensive applications. IN fast laptops Core i5 processors are also often installed. Characteristics Core i5 are between i3 and i7. Many budget-conscious gamers often choose the processor of this series.

Technically, i5 processors can have a maximum of 6 cores and do without Hyper-Threading technology, which is “reserved” only for i7 processors.

The i7 series processors provide enough power to run high-performance applications, making them very popular among IT or multimedia professionals and gamers.

The Core i7 processor makes it possible to run applications that consume a lot of resources - for example, video editing, rendering, launching virtual machines or powerful games.

The i7 is aimed primarily at professional users as well as demanding gamers. If you are using an i7 processor, all other components of the computer must be rated accordingly.

Intel i7 processors use Hyper-Threading technology - parallel computing. This speeds up intensive procedures such as rendering.

In 2010, Intel introduced new trademarks processors - Core i3, i5, i7. This event confused many users. And all because the company’s goal was completely different - it wanted to offer more quick way identifying models of low, medium and high levels. Intel also wanted to convince users that the Intel Core i7 is much better than the same i5, and this one, in turn, is better than the i3. But this does not give an exact answer to the question, which processor is better or what is the difference between Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 processors?

But there are still other differences that we will talk about.

Key Points

Some users believe that the names i3, i5 and i7 are related to the number of cores in the processor, but in fact this is not the case. Brand data selected by Intel arbitrarily. Therefore, the chips of all these processors can have either two or four cores. There are more powerful models, for desktop computers that have more cores and are superior to other processors in many ways.

So, what are the differences between these three models?

Hyper-Threading

When processors were just being born, they all had one core that executed just one set of instructions, namely thread. The company was able to increase the number of computing operations by increasing the number of cores. Thus, the processor could perform more work per unit of time.

The company's next goal is to increase the optimization of this process. They created technology for this Hyper-Threading, allowing one core to execute multiple threads simultaneously. For example, we have a processor with a 2-core chip that supports Hyper-Threading technology, then we can consider this processor as a quad-core one.

Turbo Boost

Previously, processors worked at one clock frequency, which was set by the manufacturer; to change this frequency to a higher one, people worked overclocking (overclocking) processor. This type of activity requires special knowledge, without which you can cause colossal damage to the processor or other computer components in a couple of moments.

Today, everything is completely different. Modern processors equipped with technology Turbo Boost, which allows the processor to work with a variable clock frequency. Thus, the energy efficiency and operating time of, for example, a laptop and other mobile devices.

Cache size

Processors typically work with a large number data. The operations performed may vary in size and complexity, but it often happens that the processor needs to process the same information several times. To speed up this process, and especially the processor itself, such data is stored in a special buffer (cache memory). Therefore, the processor can retrieve such data almost instantly, without unnecessary load.

Cache memory capacity in different processors is calculated differently. For example, in a low-end processor - 3-4 MB, and in higher-end models - 6-12 MB.

Of course, the more cache memory, the better and faster the processor will work, but this instruction is not suitable for all applications. For example, photo and video processing applications will use a large amount of cache memory. Therefore, than larger size cache, the more efficiently applications will run.

To perform simple tasks such as surfing the Internet or working in office software, the cache is not that significant.

Intel processor types

Now let's look at the types of processors, namely the description of each of them.

Intel Core i3

What is it suitable for?: Normal, everyday work with office applications, watching the Internet and movies in high quality. For such processes, Core i3 is the best option.

Characteristic: This processor Offers up to 2 cores and supports Hyper-Treading technology. True, it does not support Turbo Boost. Also, the processor has fairly low power consumption, so this processor is undoubtedly suitable for laptops.

Intel Core i5

What is it suitable for?: More intensive work, such as using video and photo editing software, can be played in many modern games, on low, medium and sometimes high settings.

Characteristic: This processor is used as in conventional desktop computers, and in laptops. It has from 2 to 4 cores, but does not support Hyper-Treading, but does support Turbo Boost.

Intel Core i7

Characteristic: At the moment, this chip is the most high class. It has both 2 and 4 cores and support for Hyper-Treading and Turbo Boost.

We have reviewed brief characteristics 3 types of processors, and now you can choose the best one for you.