Generations of core i5 processors. Comparison of i3, i5, i7 cores

This article provides a small comparison of i3 i5 i7 processors. Typical tasks for all Core series processors will also be briefly described. The names of Intel processors vary so much that the average user will not understand at all what one or another processor name means. Of course, in itself it carries its own meaning, but at first glance, it is a confusion of abbreviations and numbers.

Before purchasing a new processor from Intel, a reasonable question will arise: what is the difference between i3 i5 i7 processors. To understand all this, we can divide all Core processor names into two groups. The first, most interesting for us, is the line (i3/i5/i7). We will focus our attention on it. The remaining part of the name, including numbers and letters, shows us distinctive features one or another processor, which we will consider below.

There are a couple of main features in the Core series. The socket (socket for installing a processor) in the same generation will always be the same. You won't need another one motherboard for the same Core i3 as opposed to i5 or i7. All processors have a built-in graphics core. The sixth generation Skylake we are reviewing uses 1151 sockets and integrated HD530 graphics.

Core i3

Even though i3 processors are the least powerful among the Core processor series, they are an excellent choice for everyday tasks. They have two physical cores, but Hyper-Threading technology smooths out this drawback. Hyper-Threading doubles the available processor threads by emulating 4 "virtual" cores. The L3 cache size reaches 3-4 MB, depending on specific model, and frequencies range from 2.7 to 3.9 GHz. You can buy a processor for 110-140 US dollars.

He can do everything a little, but he can’t do anything perfectly. The performance of these processors is enough to make the system responsive, but heavy tasks like rendering or video editing will be a pain on them. They are fast enough to expose a modern graphics card, so they can be used in gaming systems entry level with an average video card.

Core i5

Sitting right in the middle between the i3 and i7 lines, the i5 line of processors have many of the latest features with pretty good power efficiency. This series does not have Hyper-Threading technology, but there are 4 physical cores, Turbo Boost, and processor models with an unlocked multiplier for overclocking. The amount of L3 cache reaches 6 MB (in desktop models i5).

Turbo Boost allows the processor to temporarily increase the frequency of one or more cores under load at the expense of increased power consumption and reduced computing power other kernels. In essence, this technology is a kind of overclocking of the physical core. Sixth generation i5 frequencies range from 2.2 to 3.5 GHz, and prices range from $180 to $220

Core i7

At the top are the i7 line of processors. They have four logical cores, like in the i5 line. Hyper-Threading is also present, creating as many as 8 threads on 4 physical cores. These processors have highest frequencies, reaching 4 GHz by default and 4.2 GHz in Turbo Boost. i7s come with 8 MB of L3 cache, and processors in this line can be purchased for prices ranging from $300 to $340.

Although these processors are endowed with the highest performance, this is clearly more than enough for the average user. It is the processors of this line that will allow you to see by eye how the i3 i5 i7 processors differ. i7 processors are great for programs that can take full advantage of all 8 threads. Despite this, many games to this day use only 4 cores. Even Photoshop benefits from working with more than 2 cores only when using special filters and operations. If you don't work in Maya and Autodesk on a regular basis, you will see virtually no increase in how the i3 i5 i7 differ in simple tasks.

Index values

A processor from any manufacturer has its own indexes, located in the remainder of the name after the manufacturer and product number. The higher the product ID, the more powerful the processor usually is. Letters T, U And Y denote processors designed for low power consumption. Letter K at the end indicate processors with overclocking potential, and P indicates the presence of a less powerful graphics core. If you want more detailed description indexes - check out the Intel website.

What to buy?

Without going into all these designations, we can say that Core processors make it easy to determine which one is best for you. This can be seen even from one symbol in the name of the line. The difference between i3 i5 i7 is the processing power. Another difference between i3 i5 i7 processors is the graphics core. In i5 and i7 it is usually the same, but in i3 it is weaker. Unfortunately, not all users think about how the i3 i5 i7 differs and choose a processor whose capabilities are simply not used, or vice versa.

Most users will be happy with the i5, which offers a good price-to-power ratio. i3 will still be an excellent choice for budget builds, this good option for your money. If you are confident that your processor will be tasked with heavy tasks such as rendering or editing large video files or modeling, then the capabilities of the Core i7 will completely satisfy you.

I think this article has clarified how i3 i5 i7 processors differ. Hope, this information will play a role in choosing a particular processor when purchasing.

When choosing a processor from Intel, the question arises: which chip from this corporation to choose? Processors have many characteristics and parameters that affect their performance. And in accordance with it and some features of the microarchitecture, the manufacturer gives the appropriate name. Our task is to highlight this issue. In this article, you will learn what exactly the names of Intel processors mean, and also learn about the microarchitecture of chips from this company.

Note

It should be noted in advance that solutions before 2012 will not be considered here, since technology is moving at a fast pace and these chips have too little performance with high power consumption, and are also difficult to buy in new condition. Also, server solutions will not be considered here, since they have a specific scope and are not intended for the consumer market.

Attention, the nomenclature set out below may not be valid for processors older than the period indicated above.

And if you encounter any difficulties, you can visit the website. And read this article, which talks about. And if you want to know about integrated graphics from Intel, then you should.

Tick-Tock

Intel has a special strategy for releasing its “stones”, called Tick-Tock. It consists of annual consistent improvements.

• A tick means a change in microarchitecture, which leads to a change in socket, improved performance and optimized power consumption.
• This means that it leads to a reduction in energy consumption, location possibilities more transistors on a chip, a possible increase in frequencies and an increase in cost.

This is what this strategy looks like for desktop and laptop models:

But for low-power solutions (smartphones, tablets, netbooks, nettops), the platforms look like this:

It should be noted that Bay Trail-D is made for desktops: Pentium and Celeron with the index J. And Bay Trail-M is for mobile solution and will also be designated among Pentium and Celeron by its letter - N.

Judging by the latest trends of the company, productivity itself is progressing quite slowly, while energy efficiency (performance per unit of energy consumed) is growing year by year, and it looks like laptops will soon have the same powerful processors, as on large PCs (although such representatives still exist).

Processor or abbreviated CPU is the central part of the computer. Other components are selected for the processor: motherboard, video card, RAM, etc. The performance of the processor affects the speed of the entire computer.

When choosing a processor you need to take it into account technical specifications and manufacturer.

There are two companies - Intel (Intel) and AMD (AMD) - manufacturers of computer processors. The first company is a market leader and develops state-of-the-art technologies. Intel Core i9 onmoment of the first quarter of 2018, is the most powerful processor Intel lines Core for desktop computers, Intel Core i7 are top-end processors ideal for the latest generation gaming computers and professional workstations. Intel Core i5 are different high performance, this is one of the most popular models for mid-range gaming PCs. Processors Intel Core i3 is a combination of low price and average performance for office desktops and nettops.

Inexpensive Intel Celeron and Intel Pentium processors are classic, reliable processors for entry-level computers and mobile devices.

The second company produces processors at more reasonable prices. In the briefcase AMD There are multi-core processors for desktop PCs for various purposes.

Hybrid processors AMD Athlon X4, AMD A-series- for office solutions, online games, playback of high-resolution multimedia files. AMD FX - powerful processors for the most demanding games. AMD Ryzen - for enthusiasts and professional users. AMD Ryzen 5 has become the most anticipated processor of 2017.

Number of cores– this indicator affects the number of programs that can be run on a PC without losing its performance. Modern processors have up to 14 cores.

Number of threads can be from 2 to 36. Hyper-threading technology allows each processor core to process 2 data streams, which significantly increases performance. A processor with 2 cores and support for Hyper-treading is close to 4-core in performance, and with 4 cores and Hyper-treading - to 8-core.

CPU frequency greatly affects performance. For surfing the Internet, 2 GHz is enough, for a basic gaming PC - 3.5 GHz, for gaming computer We recommend 4 GHz.

Processors can have integrated video (built-in GPU) and without it. Integrated graphics can save money on the purchase of a video card, but is only suitable for office or multimedia PCs that do not require high level graphics.

CPU heat dissipation (TDP) shows how hot it gets and what kind of cooling system is installed. Try to choose a processor with a lower TDP.

In modern central processing units It’s not easy to understand even for a specialist: many different models are produced, and their names seem to be specifically designed to confuse the buyer.

And if a lot has been written about the Core and Core 2 series in almost five years since their appearance, then there is practically no systematic information addressed to the consumer, and not to the expert, about the chips of the three newest families Core i3, i5 and i7.

What are the features of the architecture of the new processors, the differences from their predecessors?
Finally, how are they better than the still quite current Core 2 Duo and Quad?

All processors of the “i” family are built on the latest Nehalem microarchitecture, which replaced Core at the end of 2008.
The architecture, named after one of the Indian tribes, is an evolutionary development of Core and differs from it in several fundamental innovations: placement of all cores on one chip, built-in two- or three-channel controller RAM DDR3, QPI or DMI system buses that replaced FSB, third-level cache memory common to all cores, as well as the ability to integrate a graphics core into the chip.

Nehalem is the first to implement the SSE 4.2 instruction set; their power consumption is 30% less than their Core counterparts with comparable performance.
In addition, Hyper-Threading technology has returned to the new chips, allowing one physical core to be represented as two virtual ones.
The first Nehalem were produced using 45-nanometer technology, and in 2010 a gradual transition to a 32-nanometer process began.
Installation of processors requires motherboard with LGA1156 or LGA1366 connectors.

Based on the Nehalem architecture, four types of desktop processors are currently produced, known as code names Bloomfield, Clarkdale, Gulftown and Lynnfield.
Of these, Clarkdale are dual-core and produced using 32 nm technology, Bloomfield and Lynnfield are quad-core and produced using 45 nm technology, and Gulftown are 32 nm six-core chips.

The bulk of dual-core i3 and i5 are Clarkdale, quad-core i5 are Lynnfield, quad-core i7 are Bloomfield and Lynnfield, and the six-core i7 (there is only one so far, this is the 980X) is Gulftown.

Lynnfield processor block diagram

What is the difference between Bloomfield and Lynnfield quad core?
First of all, Bloomfield has a built-in three-channel memory controller, while Lynnfield has a two-channel one, which significantly affects the price.
Bloomfield implements a high-speed QPI system bus (25.6 Gbit/s), which is used to communicate with north bridge, providing work PCI interface Express 2.0, to which graphics accelerators are connected.

Lynnfield uses a DMI bus (2 Gbps), and the graphics controller PCI buses Express 2.0 is built into the processor itself, which eliminates the fundamental need for a north bridge and allows the use of a single-chip system logic set - this was done in the Intel P55 Express chipset.
Finally, Lynnfield chips are designed to be installed in the “mainstream” LGA1156 socket, and Bloomfield chips are designed for installation in the LGA1366 socket, reserved for high-end systems.

By the way, about the Intel P55 Express chipset: this set of system logic was designed specifically for Lynnfield, and the LGA1156 processor socket also appeared at the same time.
P55 motherboards work without problems with dual-core Core i3/i5 (Clarkdale), but there is one caveat: this chipset does not support the graphics core built into the processor (more on that below), meaning in any case you will have to use a discrete video accelerator.

The H57, H55 and Q57 chipsets, introduced simultaneously with Clarksdale processors, work with the integrated graphics core.
The main characteristics of all four sets of logic can be found in the table.

Nehalem processors have a rather confusing labeling system, and even the name of the family does not say much about a specific chip, since they may have different architectures and capabilities.
Therefore, let's take a closer look at their capabilities and functionality.

Dual-core Core i3 and i5, quad-core and six-core Core i5 and i7 processors differ from their predecessors primarily in that, like AMD chips, they have built-in DDR3 RAM controllers and an external bus operating at a speed of 133 MHz.
For comparison, Core 2 Duo (socket LGA775) is compatible with both DDR3 and DDR2 memory, since the memory controller is implemented at the system logic level.

In addition, dual-core Core i3 and i5 have GMA HD graphics accelerators built into the chip.
Their capabilities can be briefly described as follows: if you just want to watch HD video and are not interested in the latest 3D computer games, then the performance of the graphics core built into the processor will be quite sufficient.

According to experts, GMA HD is slightly faster than those built into chipsets graphics cores Intel GMA of previous generations.

The GMA HD core allows simultaneous decoding of two HD video streams (for example, for picture-in-picture or picture-and-picture modes) and simultaneous transmission to different digital outputs.
Supports 36-bit color depth and xvYCC extended color space, and provides the ability to transmit Dolby True HD and DTS-HD Master Audio audio streams.

Declared support software interfaces DirectX 10 (Shader Model 3.0) and Open GL 2.1.
Up to 1.7 GB (!) of system memory can be allocated for the frame buffer.
Graphics are fully compatible with universal digital interface HDMI 1.3.

The processor is the brain of the computer, but it takes a lot of your own brain to understand the differences between processors! Intel hasn't made it easy for consumers with its weird naming schemes, and the question most often asked is: what's the difference between an i3, i5, or i7 processor? Which one should I buy?

It's time to demystify it. In this article I will not touch on other Intel processors such as the Pentium series or new laptop Core M Series: They're good in their own right, but the Core series is the most popular and confusing, so let's just focus on that.

Understanding Model Numbers

Honestly, it's very simple. Intel Core i7 is better than Core i5, which in turn is better than Core i3. The problem is knowing what to expect from each processor.

First of all, i7 does not mean seven-core processor! These are just names to indicate relative performance.

Typically, the Core i3 series uses only dual-core processors, while the Core i5 and Core i7 series use dual-core and quad-core processors. Quad-core processors are usually better than dual-core processors, but don't worry about that for now.

Intel releases families of chipsets such as the new generation of Skylake processors for the 6th generation Skylake family. Each family, in turn, has its own line of Core i3, Core i5 and Core i7 processors.

You can determine which generation the processor belongs to the first digit in the four-digit model name. For example, Intel Core i3- 5 200 refers to 5 -th generation. Remember that new Intel generation will not support Windows 7, but since Windows 10 - free update anyway, use the newest generation.

Advice. Here's a useful rule of thumb. The remaining three numbers are the estimate by Intel how the processor compares to others in its own line. For example, the Intel Core i3-5350 is superior to the Core i3-5200 because 350 is more than 200.

Last letters: U, Q, H, K

Things have changed since we last looked at Intel's processor list. Decoding a list of processors. The model number is usually followed by one or a combination of the following letters: U, Y, T, Q, H, and K. Here's what they mean:

• U: Ultra low power. U rating is for laptop processors only. They use less power and are better for battery life.
• Y: Low power. Typically used for laptops and mobile processors older generation.
• T:Power Optimized for desktop processors.
• Q: Quad-core processor. The Q rating is only for processors with four physical cores.
• H: High-performance graphics. The chipset has one of the best graphics units from Intel.
• K: Unlocked. This means that you can overclock the processor yourself.

Understanding these letters and the numbering system above will help you know what the processor offers just by looking at the model number, without having to read the actual specifications.

You can find the meaning of other letters in the Intel manuals for processor numbers.

Hyper-Threading: i7 > i3 > i5

As you can see above, Intel specifically writes U and Q for the number of physical cores. Well, what other kernels are there, you ask? The answer is virtual cores enabled using Hyper-Threading technology.

In layman's terms, hyperthreading allows one physical core to act as two virtual cores, thereby performing many tasks simultaneously without activating the second physical core (which will require more power from the system).

If both processors are active and using hyperthreading, these four virtual cores will compute faster. However, note that physical cores are faster than virtual cores. A quad-core processor will perform much better than a dual-core CPU with hyperthreading!

The Intel Core i3 series has hyper-threading. The Intel Core i7 series also supports hyperthreading. Intel Core i5 series does not support it.

Turbo Boost: i7 > i5 > i3

On the other hand, the Intel Core i3 series does not support Turbo Boost. The Core i5 series uses Turbo Boost to speed up your tasks, just like the Core i7.

Turbo Boost is a patented technology to intelligently increase clock frequency processor if required by the application. For example, if you're playing a game and your system requires some extra power, Turbo Boost will kick in to compensate.

Turbo Boost is useful for those who use resource-intensive software such as video editors or video games, but this does not have of great importance if you are just going to browse the web and use Microsoft Office.

Besides Hyper-Threading and Turbo Boost, one of the main differences in Core line is the cache size. The cache is the processor's own memory and acts as its personal RAM - and it is one of little-known functions, which can slow down your PC.

Exactly the same as with RAM than larger size cache, the better. Therefore, if the processor performs one task over and over again, it will store that task in its cache. If the processor can store more tasks in its private memory, it can make them faster if they appear again.

The Core i3 series typically contains up to 3 MB of cache. The Core i5 series has between 3MB and 6MB cache. The Core i7 series has 4MB to 8MB cache.

Since graphics were integrated into the processor chip, this has become important point when purchasing processors. But as with everything else, Intel made the system a little confusing.

Now, as a rule, there are three levels graphics devices: Intel HD, Intel Iris and Intel Iris Pro. You'll see a model name like Intel HD 520 or Intel Iris Pro 580... and that's where the confusion begins.

Here's a quick example of how overwhelming it can be. Intel HD 520 is the main graphics chipset. The Intel Iris 550 is better than the Intel HD 520, but also basic. But Intel HD 530 is a high performance graphics unit and is better than Intel Iris 550. However, Intel Iris Pro 580 is also a high performance graphics unit and is better than Intel HD 530.

Best advice on how to interpret them? Just don't. Instead, rely on the Intel naming system. If the processor model ends with H, you know it is a high-end module.

Comparison of i3, i5, i7 cores

Simply put, here's who each processor type is best for:

• Core i3: main users. Economic choice. Convenient for viewing on the Internet, using Microsoft Office, video calls and social networks. Not for gamers or professionals.
• Core i5: Intermediate users. Those who want a balance between performance and price. Good for gaming if you buy an HQ processor or a Q processor with a dedicated GPU.
• Core i7: Professionals. This is the best Intel can do right now.

How did you choose?

This article is a basic guide for those who want to buy a new Intel processor, but gets confused between Core i3, i5 and i7. But even after understanding all this, when it's time to make a decision, you may need to choose between two processors from different generations.

What other advice do you have for those who are similarly stuck buying a PCU and need to make a choice?