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]
Intel’s 16-core flagship Alder Lake i9-12900K processor delivers a staggering performance improvement over it's predecessor (+70% 64-core). It features a new hybrid architecture which combines eight hyper-threaded performance cores with eight efficiency cores for a total of 24 threads. Alder Lake CPUs will require a new Z690 chipset which supports DDR5 memory and PCIe 5.0. At an MRSP of $590 USD, the i9-12900K is aimed at power users who demand the best of the best. That said, Intel’s 10-core 12600K matches the 12900K’s performance for the majority of consumer use cases at a 50% price discount. [Nov '21CPUPro]
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.