The quad core i3-8350K hails from Intel’s most recent (and as yet unreleased) generation of Coffee Lake processors. It has a stock clock of 4.0 GHz, 8MB of cache and a TDP of 95W. The 8350K is the first i3 processor to feature four cores (previous generations of i3s had two cores and four threads). With this eighth generation of processors, Intel has introduced a step change in their nomenclature which witnesses the old quad core i5s become the new quad core i3s. Our benchmarks show a 25% increase in effective speed between generations of i3 8350K vs 7350K and near equivalence between the outgoing i5-7600K and the new i3-8350K. Although the price points of Coffee Lake are not yet known, if Intel keep them roughly in line with the previous generations (i3 ~= $140) this will represent the best improvement in value for money since Sandy Bridge as the 8350K at $140 would be 34.8% cheaper than a 7600K at $215. Cynics among us will see this as an effort to fend off competition from AMD’s new multi-core Ryzen processors. It appears Intel may have been successful with this move as early benchmarks from the 8350K suggest that it beats the more expensive 8 core Ryzen 7 1700 in single and quad core performance by 25%. The 8350K is a great choice for gaming builds, but the budget will also need to factor in a complementary motherboard based on the new 300 series chipset. Expect the quad core i3-8100 which is the 8350K’s little sister featuring a base clock of 3.6 GHz, to follow shortly. [Aug '17CPUPro]
The 8 core, 16 thread 1900X is the third and entry-level processor from AMD’s Threadripper series of high-end desktop (HEDT) processors. The 1900X is based on AMD’s 14nm Zen architecture and features 20MB of cache (16MB of which is L3) and quad channel DDR4, which is twice as many channels as in the Ryzen 7 series. It has a base clock of 3.8GHz increasing to a boost of 4.0 GHz and has an additional short-term boost of 0.2 GHz when thermals allow. Most impressively, the 1900X features 64 PCIe lanes which is the same of number of lanes in the nearly twice as expensive Ryzen Threadripper flagship, the 1950X. This facilitates the simultaneous high speed PCIe connection of up to seven different graphics or storage peripherals. By comparison, Intel’s similarly priced 8 core, 16 thread i7-7820X which, even though it has an 11% effective speed advantage over the 1900X, only has 28 PCIe lanes (down from 44 lanes as recently seen in the recent i9-7900X). Both upgrade options may require new, and not inexpensive motherboards, the 7820X requires an X299 (Basin Falls) chipset and the 1900X utilizes the premium X399 motherboard. Despite the considerable price tags attached to the CPUs and motherboards, never before has HEDT processing been so affordable. [Oct '17CPUPro]
We calculate effective speed which measures real world performance for typical users. Effective speed is adjusted by current prices to yield a value for money rating. Our calculated values are checked against thousands of individual user ratings. The customizable table below combines these factors to bring you the definitive list of top CPUs. [CPUPro]
Welcome to our PC speed test tool. UserBenchmark will test your PC and compare the results to other users with the same components. You can quickly size up your PC, identify hardware problems and explore the best value for money upgrades.