I5 generation list. Intel processors

When buying a flash drive, many people ask themselves the question: "how to choose the right flash drive." Of course, choosing a flash drive is not so difficult if you know exactly for what purposes it is purchased. In this article I will try to give a complete answer to the question posed. I decided to write only about what to look for when buying.

A flash drive (USB drive) is a drive designed to store and transfer information. The flash drive works very simply without batteries. You just need to connect it to the USB port of your PC.

1. Flash drive interface

At the moment there are 2 interfaces: USB 2.0 and USB 3.0. If you decide to buy a USB flash drive, then I recommend taking a USB 3.0 USB flash drive. This interface was made recently, its main feature is a high data transfer rate. We'll talk about speeds a little later.

This is one of the main parameters that you need to look at first. Now flash drives are sold from 1 GB to 256 GB. The cost of a flash drive will directly depend on the amount of memory. Here you need to immediately decide for what purpose a flash drive is bought. If you are going to store text documents on it, then 1 GB is enough. For downloading and transferring movies, music, photos, etc. you need to take the more, the better. To date, the most popular are flash drives with a capacity of 8GB to 16GB.

3. Body material

The body can be made of plastic, glass, wood, metal, etc. Flash drives are mostly made of plastic. There is nothing I can advise here, it all depends on the preferences of the buyer.

4. Transfer rate

Earlier I wrote that there are two standards USB 2.0 and USB 3.0. Now I will explain how they differ. The USB 2.0 standard has a read speed of up to 18 Mbps and a write speed of up to 10 Mbps. The USB 3.0 standard has a read speed of 20-70 Mbps, and a write speed of 15-70 Mbps. Here, I think, nothing needs to be explained.

Now in stores you can find flash drives of different shapes and sizes. They can be in the form of jewelry, fancy animals, etc. Here I would advise taking flash drives that have a protective cap.

6. Password protection

There are flash drives that have a password protection feature. Such protection is carried out using a program that is located in the flash drive itself. The password can be set both on the entire flash drive, and on part of the data in it. Such a flash drive will primarily be useful to people who transfer corporate information in it. According to the manufacturers, if you lose it, you don't have to worry about your data. Not so simple. If such a flash drive falls into the hands of an understanding person, then hacking it is just a matter of time.

Such flash drives look very beautiful, but I would not recommend buying them. Because they are very fragile and often break in half. But if you are a neat person, then feel free to take it.

Conclusion

Nuances, as you noticed, a lot. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. In my opinion, the most important parameters when choosing: the standard of a flash drive, the volume and speed of writing and reading. And everything else: design, material, options - this is just a personal choice of everyone.

Good afternoon my dear friends. In today's article, I want to talk about how to choose the right mouse pad. When buying a rug, many do not attach any importance to this. But as it turned out, this moment needs to be given special attention, because. mat determine one of the indicators of comfort while working at a PC. For an avid gamer, choosing a rug is a completely different story. Consider what options for mouse pads have been invented today.

Mat options

1. Aluminum
2. Glass
3. Plastic
4. Rubberized
5. Double sided
6. Helium

And now I would like to talk about each species in more detail.

1. First, I want to consider three options at once: plastic, aluminum and glass. These mats are very popular with gamers. For example, plastic mats are easier to find commercially. On such mats, the mouse glides quickly and accurately. And most importantly, these mats are suitable for both laser and optical mice. Aluminum and glass mats will be a little more difficult to find. And yes, they will cost a lot. The truth is for what - they will serve for a very long time. Rugs of these types have small flaws. Many people say that they rustle and feel a little cool to the touch during operation, which may cause discomfort for some users.

2. Rubberized (rag) mats have a soft glide, but the accuracy of their movements is worse. For ordinary users, such a rug will be just right. Yes, and they are much cheaper than the previous ones.

3. Double-sided mousepads are, in my opinion, a very interesting kind of mousepads. As the name implies, these rugs have two sides. As a rule, one side is high-speed, and the other is high-precision. It happens that each side is designed for a certain game.

4. Helium pads have a silicone cushion. She allegedly supports her hand and relieves tension from it. For me personally, they were the most uncomfortable. By appointment, they are designed for office workers, since they sit at the computer all day. For ordinary users and gamers, these mats are not suitable. The mouse slides very poorly on the surface of such rugs, and their accuracy is not the best.

Mat sizes

There are three types of rugs: large, medium and small. It all depends on the taste of the user. But as is commonly believed, large rugs are well suited for games. Small and medium ones are taken mainly for work.

Rugs design

In this regard, there are no restrictions. It all depends on what you want to see on your rug. The blessing now on rugs that only do not draw. The most popular are the logos of computer games such as DotA, Warcraft, ruler, etc. But if it happened that you could not find a rug with the pattern you need, do not be upset. Now you can order a print on the rug. But such rugs have a minus: when printing is applied to the surface of the rug, its properties deteriorate. Design for quality.

On this I want to end the article. From myself I wish you to make the right choice and be happy with it.
Who does not have a mouse or wants to replace it with another, I advise you to look at the article:.

Monoblocks from Microsoft have replenished with a new monoblock model called Surface Studio. Microsoft presented its new product recently at an exhibition in New York.

On a note! I wrote an article a couple of weeks ago where I reviewed the Surface monoblock. This monoblock was presented earlier. Click on to view the article.

Design

Microsoft calls its new product the thinnest monoblock in the world. With a weight of 9.56 kg, the thickness of the display is only 12.5 mm, the other dimensions are 637.35x438.9 mm. The display dimensions are 28 inches with a resolution greater than 4K (4500x3000 pixels), aspect ratio 3:2.

On a note! The display resolution of 4500x3000 pixels corresponds to 13.5 million pixels. This is 63% more than 4K resolution.

The monoblock display itself is touch-sensitive, enclosed in an aluminum case. On such a display, it is very convenient to draw with a stylus, which ultimately opens up new possibilities for using a monoblock. In my opinion, this monoblock model will appeal to creative people (photographers, designers, etc.).

On a note! For people of creative professions, I advise you to look at an article where I considered monoblocks of similar functionality. Click on the selected one: .

To everything written above, I would add that the main feature of the monoblock will be its ability to instantly turn into a tablet with a huge work surface.

On a note! By the way, Microsoft has another amazing candy bar. To find out about it, go to.

Specifications

I will present the characteristics in the form of a photograph.

From the periphery, I note the following: 4 USB ports, a Mini-Display Port connector, an Ethernet network port, a card-reader, a 3.5 mm audio jack, a 1080p webcam, 2 microphones, a 2.1 Dolby Audio Premium audio system, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0. It also supports Xbox wireless controllers.

Price

When buying a monoblock, it will be installed with Windows 10 Creators Update. This system should be released in the spring of 2017. This operating system will have updated Paint, Office, etc. The price of a monoblock will be from $ 3,000.
Dear friends, write in the comments what you think about this monoblock, ask your questions. I'll be glad to chat!

OCZ has demonstrated new VX 500 SSDs. These drives will be equipped with Serial ATA 3.0 interface and are made in 2.5-inch form factor.

On a note! For those who are interested in how SSD drives work and how long they live, you can read in an article I wrote earlier:.

The novelties are made using 15-nanometer technology and will be equipped with Tochiba MLC NAND flash memory microchips. The controller in SSD drives will be used by Tochiba TC 35 8790.
The VX 500 drive lineup will consist of 128GB, 256GB, 512GB and 1TB. According to the manufacturer, the sequential read speed will be 550 Mb/s (this is for all drives in this series), but the write speed will be from 485 Mb/s to 512 Mb/s.

The number of input / output operations per second (IOPS) with data blocks of 4 KB in size can reach 92,000 when reading, and 65,000 when writing (this is all arbitrary).
The thickness of OCZ VX 500 drives will be 7 mm. This will allow them to be used in ultrabooks.

Prices of new products will be as follows: 128 GB - $ 64, 256 GB - $ 93, 512 GB - $ 153, 1 TB - $ 337. I think in Russia they will cost more.

Lenovo has unveiled its new IdeaCentre Y910 gaming all-in-one at Gamescom 2016.

On a note! Earlier, I wrote an article where I already considered gaming monoblocks from different manufacturers. This article can be viewed by clicking on this one.

The novelty from Lenovo received a 27-inch frameless display. The display resolution is 2560x1440 pixels (this is QHD format), the refresh rate is 144 Hz, and the response time is 5 ms.

The monoblock will have several configurations. The maximum configuration includes a 6th generation Intel Core i7 processor, a hard drive up to 2 TB or 256 GB. The amount of RAM is 32 GB DDR4. The video card NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 or GeForce GTX 1080 with Pascal architecture will be responsible for the graphics. Thanks to such a video card, it will be possible to connect a virtual reality helmet to the monoblock.
From the periphery of the monoblock, I would single out the Harmon Kardon audio system with 5-watt speakers, the Killer DoubleShot Pro Wi-Fi module, a webcam, USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports, and HDMI connectors.

In the basic version, the IdeaCentre Y910 monoblock will be available in September 2016 at a price of 1800 euros. But the monoblock with the version of "VR-ready" will appear in October at a price of 2200 euros. It is known that this version will have a GeForce GTX 1070 graphics card.

MediaTek has decided to upgrade its Helio X30 mobile processor. So now the developers from MediaTek are designing a new mobile processor called Helio X35.

I would like to briefly talk about Helio X30. This processor has 10 cores, which are combined into 3 clusters. Helio X30 has 3 variations. The first - the most powerful - consists of Cortex-A73 cores with a frequency of up to 2.8 GHz. There are also blocks with Cortex-A53 cores with a frequency of up to 2.2 GHz and Cortex-A35 with a frequency of 2.0 GHz.

The new Helio X35 processor also has 10 cores and is being created using 10nm technology. The clock frequency in this processor will be much higher than that of its predecessor and ranges from 3.0 Hz. The novelty will allow you to use up to 8 GB LPDDR4 RAM. The Power VR 7XT controller will most likely be responsible for the graphics in the processor.
The station itself can be seen in the photographs in the article. In them we can observe the drive bays. One bay with a 3.5" jack and the other with a 2.5" jack. Thus, both a solid state disk (SSD) and a hard disk drive (HDD) can be connected to the new station.

The dimensions of the Drive Dock station are 160x150x85mm, and the weight is no less than 970 grams.
Many people probably have a question about how the Drive Dock connects to a computer. The answer is: this happens through a USB 3.1 Gen 1 port. According to the manufacturer, the sequential read speed will be 434 Mb / s, and in write mode (serial) 406 Mb / s. The novelty will be compatible with Windows and Mac OS.

This device will be very useful for people who work with photo and video materials at a professional level. You can also use Drive Dock to back up files.
The price for a new device will be acceptable - it is $ 90.

On a note! Previously, Renduchinthala worked at Qualcomm. And since November 2015, he moved to a competing company Intel.

In his interview, Renduchintala did not talk about mobile processors, but only said the following, and I quote: "I prefer to talk less and do more."
Thus, the top manager of Intel made an excellent intrigue with his interview. We just have to wait for more announcements in the future.

Since its first appearance about 50 years ago, Intel processors are still the most advanced developments in the microelectronics market. It is Intel that sets the general trends in the development of the industry and determines its future for decades to come.

The performance of a personal computer (PC) depends primarily on the central processing unit (CPU). Currently existing CPUs allow operating systems not only to multitask, but to do it practically at the hardware level. Newer CPUs that have multiple cores on their chip can distribute program execution among them without any problems. This significantly speeds up the performance of the PC in comparison with the performance indicators that were in single-core systems.

Recently, the development of electronics has been going at a very fast pace. In fact, every year a new generation of processors appears, significantly different from the previous one. Many people really don’t like such a high frequency of CPU generation changes, since the actual performance differences can sometimes be very small, but often the hardware base of the entire PC changes and you have to constantly upgrade with a radical change to keep your hardware up to date. the entire filling of the computer.

On the other hand, with the release of each new generation, methods of processing information are being improved. Therefore, if we compare the progress in the industry over the past 10 years, then it will be no less than in the decade preceding it, when they moved from a pipelined architecture to full streaming support and a CPU with real multi-core.

Important! Not always the new generation will be faster than the old one. In some cases, older generations (eg Haswell) will be on par, if not faster, than newer generations. The benefits may be more correct work with peripherals, the implementation of some new concepts, compatibility or optimization issues, etc.

The article will review the currently existing CPUs for PCs, describe the newest processors released by Intel in 2018, and also indicate the most powerful CPU from this company to date. And despite the fact that at the moment the most powerful processor in the CPU market is not an Intel product, they have every chance to regain their leadership in the very near future.

The classification of the latest CPUs fits perfectly into the standard labeling that Intel has been using for almost 10 years, since the release in early 2011 of the second generation of processors, known as Sandy Bridge.

In this marking, the designation of each CPU is as follows:

Intel Core XY - ABCD EF

Now consider the decoding of this inscription in more detail:

Intel Core is the name of the processor brand. A characteristic feature is more than 1 core. The brand has existed for more than 12 years, the first multi-core under it was released in November 2006.

1. XY - CPU series; consists of a letter and a number. Maybe i3, i5, i7 or i9 for desktop PCs, or m5, x5 etc. for mobile PCs; often a series may even consist of a single letter, such as E or N. As a rule, such designations are also used for mobile solutions.
2. A - Generation number. It takes values ​​from 2 to 8 (despite the fact that the ninth one already officially exists).
3. BCD is a three-digit processor part number. Roughly speaking, his model is within the framework of a particular generation. Indexes can take both numeric and alphabetic designations.
4. EF - Version. It can also be one or two letters. Describes the features of the processor.

Consider this marking on the example of the 6th generation Intel Core processor:

Part number 920 indicates that this Intel processor is used for mobile PCs. Even though it's an i7, it uses mobile solutions. The CPU frequency is from 2.9 to 3.8 GHz,

The HQ suffix means that there are 4 cores on the processor chip, and there is also a high-speed graphics solution.

Another example, a typical representative of the seventh generation of Intel:

Intel Core i7 - 7700K

This is an ordinary representative of the Kaby Lake architecture, which does not stand out in any way, however, it has an unlocked multiplier that allows it to be overclocked to 4.6 GHz. The number of cores in this model is 4, the number of threads is 8. The standard power consumption for desktop solutions of the 7th generation is 65 watts.

Intel processors can have significant differences even within the same generation, and in some cases even within the same series. Since this developer always liked to experiment and release many trial solutions to the market (albeit of quite good quality), in some cases very interesting situations turned out.

So, for example, the youngest representative of the 8th generation Intel processor family i3-8350 turned out to be more productive than the best top-end models of the sixth and almost all seventh generation “middle peasants”. Despite the fact that it is only 4-thread and costs about 1.5-2.5 times less than its competitors.

Separately, it should be said about Intel mobile processors. Despite their reduced power consumption and the absence of various overdrive functions, they are, in fact, not so far behind stationary solutions in terms of performance. And it's understandable why: multi-core and multi-threading allows you not to worry too much about the clock frequency used, the value of which, in fact, determines power consumption.

In the list of top processors for PCs, most of the positions currently belong to Intel, however, AMD products lead the rankings. Their offspring, the Thread Ripper model, is not yet up to par with even the top Intel models, such as the i9-9900K.

Processor Key Features and Performance Information

The main characteristics of processors include:

1. the production technology used, expressed in the size of the minimum element of the microcircuit; measured in nanometers or nm; the smaller it is, the smaller the crystal has and the lower its power consumption;
2. the clock frequency of the processor, which actually determines the speed of one core;
3. the number of cores and threads in the processor;
4. the amount of cache memory of 2 and 3 levels for storing the executable program for quick access to it;
5. the technologies used for the interaction of the CPU and peripherals (the presence of a direct memory access controller, a PCIE bus controller, etc.).

Important! All these characteristics affect the performance of the CPU, however, there is no unambiguous relationship or some kind of universal technique that can evaluate the performance of a particular CPU. Everything will be determined by the results of tests based on various PC configurations.

And it is far from a fact that the performance of the "tops" of the 8th generation will exceed the performance of, for example, the "tops" of the 4th. Although, reverse options are also possible, when the representative of the middle segment of the 8th generation was significantly ahead of the tops from the 6th (as, for example, the i3-8350 described earlier).

Desktop, mobile and server processors

The main difference between CPUs for desktop, mobile and server PCs is the duration of their continuous operation. CPUs for server solutions are designed to run continuously for many years, 24/7. At the same time, it is the processor reliability parameters that come to the fore. Therefore, server CPUs do not always use the most advanced technologies; it is better to use a less modern, but well-tested architecture to ensure constant and stable server operation.

Mobile systems are designed for the shortest operating time, while they must also have the minimum power consumption. In such devices, mobility and energy independence come to the fore.

Desktop CPUs are usually the most advanced devices with many additional features. It is on them that all new technologies and non-standard solutions are tested. In terms of performance, they often bypass server CPUs.

In the process of development and production of microcircuits, no one is immune from errors, even world leaders. As certain CPU models are used, a database of errors contained in them is accumulated.

The result of the analysis of these errors is the reissue by Intel of the documentation for the CPU, indicating the possible cases of their manifestation. Typically, manufacturers also release driver and BIOS patches for PCs using these processors.

Qualitative and quantitative changes in generations

Announcing the very idea of ​​generations of processors replacing each other, Intel announced that the process of transition from one generation to another will be relatively smooth. The intergenerational transition strategy (the so-called "Tick-Tock" release scheme) consisted of two phases:

• Step "Tick" - in this case, a transition is made to a new technological process (that is, the size of the elementary cells of microchips is reduced), architectural changes are minimal. Basically, at this stage, quantitative changes took place: the frequency increased, the size of the cache of levels 2 and 3 increased, etc.
• Step "So" - when the new technical process is mastered, you can move on to qualitative changes. It is at this step that the architecture of the processor changes: cores are added or removed, support for other memory is built in, a graphics core is installed, etc.

However, in fact, everything turned out to be not at all as rosy as it seemed to Intel engineers. From the "Tick-Tock" scheme, I had to switch to the "Tick-Tock-Tock" scheme, that is, to make qualitative changes in two stages.

Consider how the quantitative and qualitative changes in the Intel CPU have changed over the past 10 years:

1. First generation, Westmere. The transition to the 32 nm process technology (from 65 or 45 nm) was made. The frequency increased to 3.47 GHz. Start of using DDR3-1333 memory. Processors have 4 cores, 8 threads.
2. Second generation, Sandy Bridge. There are no process changes. The frequency has increased to 3.6 GHz, the transition to DDR3-1600 has been made. Some models used 6 cores. Integration of the first graphics chip - Intel HD 2000.
3. Third generation, Ivy Bridge. Transition to 22 nm. DDR3-1833 is used, the maximum CPU frequency is 3.7 GHz. 6 cores and 12 threads. The video system changes to HD 4000.
4. Fourth generation, Haswell. The process is unchanged. Early models used DDR3, later DDR4-2133. The frequency has crossed the threshold of 4.0 GHz. The first 8 core CPUs appeared. The graphics core used is Iris Pro 5200.
5. Fifth generation, Broadwell. Transition to 14 nm. Using DDR4-2400 memory. The maximum CPU frequency is 4.5 GHz. The number of cores in top models will increase to 10. Graphics - Iris Pro 6200.
6. Sixth generation, Skylake. The process is unchanged. DDR4-2666 memory is used. The frequencies are at the same 4.0 GHz, the maximum number of cores is 8, the number of threads is increased to 16. Graphics are HD 530 and Iris Pro 580.
7. Seventh generation, Kaby Lake. The process hasn't changed. The clock frequency in Turbo mode remained 4.5 GHz. 4 cores and 8 threads are used. Support for DDR4 memory. Implemented full hardware support for USB 3.1 without additional controllers on the motherboard. Graphics used - HD 630.
8. 8th generation processors, Coffee Lake. Production technology - 14 nm. 6 cores and 12 threads are used. Used DDR4-2666 memory. Turbo frequency up to 5.0 GHz.
9. Ninth generation, Coffee Lake Refresh. Changes are minimal. Increased the number of cores/threads to 8/16.

Overview of new products in 2018

The main events related to the release of new products in 2018 took place in the second half of the year. And the most important of these events was not the announcement of 10 nm Cannon Lake, promised by Intel.

In August 2018, AMD released its best and fastest CPU to date, the ThreadRipper 2990WX. This "monster" consists of 32 cores and runs with 64 threads. It is made using transitional technology at 12 nm. The chip supports 40 PCIE lanes and 8 DDR4-2933 channels. True, the cost of this "top" also turned out to be considerable - 1800 US dollars.

In addition to it, simpler models were also released with fewer cores and lower cost:

• TR 2970 WX - 24 cores/48 threads, $1300;
• TR 2950 X - 16 cores/32 threads, $900
• TR 2920 X - 12 cores/24 threads, $650

Unfortunately, Intel was unable to give an adequate response to its main competitor. The announced release of the ninth generation on October 8 turned out to be just an updated 8th generation of Intel processors with slightly improved characteristics.

The best Intel processor in this line is the i9-9900K processor, which operates at frequencies from 3.6 to 5.0 GHz. It contains 8 cores and runs in 16 threads. Its cost is 488 dollars. Also in this line of interest are two CPUs:

• i7-9700K, 8 cores/8 threads, 3.6-4.9 GHz, $373
• i5-9600K, 6 cores/6 threads, 3.7-4.6 GHz, $262

All of these Intel processors support 40 PCIE lanes and DDR4-2666 memory.

In terms of commercial value compared to AMD's competitors, Intel's products also look less attractive, with a stream price of $30.5/stream compared to AMD's $27/stream. The only thing that can sweeten the pill is the high frequency of Intel products, which is 4.6-5.0 GHz in turbo mode compared to AMD's maximum frequency of 3.5 GHz.

However, performance tests by enthusiasts and reviews of the best processors released in 2018 show that AMD products are more attractive than Intel products on a per unit cost basis. This hasn't happened in over 15 years when AMD took the lead in the CPU market with the release of the first 64-bit Athlon 64 processor in 2003.

The new 10th generation processors based on the 10nm Cannon Lake architecture are expected to be released in 2019. The release of new processors is scheduled for the first half of the year. It is still unknown whether there will be a significant change in characteristics, however, the appearance in 2018 of the main competitor, AMD, of a processor with 32 cores / 64 threads, leaves Intel no choice but to make at least an analogue of such a CPU.

In August 2017, Intel pleased us with the announcement of the 8th generation Intel Core processors. Users, most likely, have long ceased to be guided by the differences between some generations from others, their features, and most importantly, their advantages. After all, they have more or less the same markings. So does it make sense to move from one generation to another?

A few years ago, we published an article that covered the development of the Intel processor architecture. There we talked about the fact that the development of core architectures is subject to the two-stage concept of "Tick-Tock": the development of each tick is the emergence of a new technical process and the release of processors on it using the existing architecture, and each tick is the appearance of a new architecture (the second generation, if want to). The entire cycle lasts approximately 2 years, one year for each stage.

The existing numbering of Core processor generations begins in 2009, when the Westmere core was introduced, which replaced Nahalem.

• 1st generation Westmere"and 2nd generation" Sandy Bridge"(2011). The technological process in this case was identical - 32 nm, but the changes in terms of chip architecture are significant - the north bridge of the motherboard and the integrated graphics accelerator were transferred to the CPU core.
• 3rd generation Ivy Bridge"(2012) and 4th generation" Haswell» (2013) — 22 nm process technology. The power consumption of processors has been reduced by 30-50% due to the introduction of many new technological features into production, such as 3D three-gate transistors, the clock frequencies of the chips have been increased, while the performance has increased slightly. Haswell processors required a change to a new socket due to a change in the system bus and a new memory bus.
• 5th generation Broadwell"(2014) and 6th generation" skylake» (2015) – 14 nm process technology. The frequency has been increased again, power consumption has been improved even more (10-30% improvement in battery life) and several new instructions have been added that improve performance. However, the 5th generation captivates not only with battery life. In addition, such processors are able to load in no more than 3 seconds, convert video up to 8 times faster, and also work with some 3D games 12 times more efficiently than their Haswell predecessors. Also, the new processors support the latest technologies, among which I especially want to highlight 4K, a Wi-Di wireless screen and a built-in security option with the ability to quickly encrypt transmitted data.
  But Skylake has become the most serious microarchitecture update in the last 10 years: we highlight support for DDR4 and at the same time DDR3L with reduced memory supply voltage, USB3.1 first generation, wireless charging, and Thunderbolt 3 support. However, please note that Thunderbolt 3 support here requires a separate Thunderbolt controller, which is not included in the chipset by default. In addition, a fairly powerful graphics core Intel HD 520/530 was integrated into the core. I must say that the processor has become a successful marketing solution, offering not only the usual little performance boost due to architecture optimization, but also introduced support for a number of technological solutions. This led to the need to redesign motherboards and rewrite the BIOS to support new features. According to HP, their Elitebook laptops had a lot of stability problems precisely because of the inclusion of many new untested technologies, including Thunderbolt 3. Patched BIOS versions replaced one another every month.

7th generation Core is our present

The seventh generation, codenamed " Kaby Lake”, was introduced in 2016, and devices on it are still being produced. This platform surprised by the use of 14 nm process technology. Yes, on this core, the traditional Intel core update cycle has broken - there was no transition to the 10 nm process technology. There was not enough time for technological preparation for an even greater increase in chip density by reducing transistors. Kaby Lake is just a "tweaked" version of Skylake, but it brings some important new features with it:

1. New Intel HD 630 integrated graphics delivering up to 30% better performance in synthetic benchmarks than the previous Intel HD 620.
2. The new microarchitecture has significantly improved power consumption, which is 7.5 W for Kaby Lake, which cannot be said about Skylake with its 15 watt consumption.
3. Kaby Lake implemented native support for USB 3.1 ports, unlike Skylake, where this required additional controllers on the motherboard.

Chipset Support

The important point is that Kaby Lake uses the same LGA 1151 socket, so you can use Kaby Lake on a motherboard that had a Skylake chip installed. However, Skylake 100-series motherboards do not support a number of new features, so upgrading to 200-series chipsets is recommended. The system bus connecting the processor and the chipset has changed. Although both generations of processors have 6 PCIe 3.0 lanes from the CPU, Kaby Lake uses 24 PCIe lanes from the PCH (Platform Controller Hub), while Skylake only has 20 lanes.

Let me remind you that processors on the LGA1150 socket used the DMI 2.0 system bus, while starting with Skylake, the LGA1150 socket began to use the DMI 3.0 bus, which has a bandwidth of 8 Gigatransactions per second (32 Gb / s or 4 Gb / s in each direction ). DMI 3.0 is essentially the equivalent of four PCIe 3.0 lanes. All data from I / O interfaces, including USB flash drives, SATA SSDs and gigabit Ethernet, first passes through the PCH, and only then through the DMI enters the system memory, after which it reaches the CPU. Strictly speaking, the DMI 3.0 bus is never fully loaded, but with a large number of fast peripherals such as an SSD array, it makes sense. Interestingly, the budget chipsets of both the 100 and 200 families (eg H110 and C226) used DMI 2.0, while higher performance chipsets used DMI 3.0 at the same time.

Top chipset of the 100th family Z170 has a total of 26 bus lines HSIO(High-Speed ​​Input-Output), six of which are dedicated to six permanent USB 3.0 ports. Thus, the chipset is left with 20 configurable HSIO lines that can be assigned to work with a particular device or bus. Each SATA port also uses an HSIO line if not connected via a third party controller (although the controller also needs at least one line to communicate with the PCH). The diagram shows that GbE controllers and PCIe SSDs also use the available HSIO lanes.

And here is a modest chipset H110 entry-level uses only 14 HSIO lines. For those who are interested in the subtleties of how the manufacturer misleads us, I will give a summary table describing the actual number of lines that allow you to connect one or another number of peripherals. It is with this number that the manufacturer of motherboards can play, installing one or another number of interfaces he needs.

This is how the block diagram of the top chipset looks like Intel Z270:

Kaby Lake processors also have a wide range of heat dissipation requirements, varying from 3.5W to 95W. Among the general characteristics, one can single out support for up to 4 cores in the main processors, L4 cache memory from 64 to 128 MB. This is the most scalable line of processors in 10 years, hence the multiple indexes in processor names - Y(ultra-low power consumption 4.5W), U(15W) H and S(desktop processors).

From the point of view of the main features for the user, it is most significant that the updated graphics chip supports hardware encoding and decoding of 4K video. For this, a codec is used. HEVC(High Efficiency Video Coding - H.265). The HEVC codec with high image quality allows you to change on the go and reduce the bitrate, and, accordingly, the file size. Space saving compared to H.264 standard can reach 25-50% while maintaining quality, moreover, it supports parallel encoding! The GPU takes over the calculations, which unloads the main core, which Skylake suffered from. This also led to an increase in battery life.

In general, the performance in all other applications remained almost the same: the increase amounted to several percent due to an increase in the base frequency of the models by 100 MHz. The Turbo Boost technology has also been slightly updated here.

turbo boost- Intel technology to automatically increase the clock speed of the processor above the nominal, if this does not exceed the limits of power, temperature and current as part of the design power (TDP). This results in performance improvements for single-threaded and multi-threaded applications. In fact, this is the technology of "self-acceleration" of the processor. Availability of Turbo Boost technology is subject to the presence of one or more cores operating at less than rated power. System Turbo Boost time depends on the workload. This option is enabled and disabled via the BIOS.

So, Turbo Boost in Kaby Lake has been improved due to faster switching between core frequencies.

In the 7th generation, Intel decided to change the names of processor models, and if in the Skylake line we had three models named m3, m5 and m7, then Kaby Lake named its models m3, i5 and i7. Now, in order not to be misled, and to figure out which i5 and i7 processors are in front of you - low-power Kaby Lake or more powerful Skylake - you will have to pay attention to the full name of the processor. The "m" models contain the letter "Y" in their name, while the more powerful processors will have the letter "U" instead.

Thunderbolt 3 - thunder in platform building

The introduction of Thunderbolt 3 at the chipset level in Kaby Lake was an important milestone in the development of interests and platform design. This is still a strange and obscure thing that has great prospects in the market. This is a universal interface that combines completely different ports into one single whole. It is based on the PCI Express bus, which allows you to re-switch all modern serial interfaces with each other.

The Thunderbolt 3 controller delivers up to 40 Gbps of connectivity, doubling the speed of the previous generation, and supports USB 3.1 second generation (Gen2) 10 Gb/s(rather than 5 Gb / s like Skylake) and DisplayPort 1.2, HDMI 2.0, which allows you to connect two 4K displays, output video and audio signals simultaneously. In addition, Thunderbolt 3 is backward compatible with Thunderbolt 2. The Thunderbolt 3 interface itself uses a connector based on USB Type-C as the main.

You probably noticed that many laptops since 2016 have many of these interfaces on board right away, and the declared USB 3.1 support is just implemented by the new USB Type-C ports. Through this port, for example, both charging tablet computers and connecting docking stations that have both video and audio interfaces in one. So, for example, the HP Elite x2 1012 tablet has two USB-C ports to which the Elite USB-C dock is connected, and all displays, LAN and audio devices are already connected to the dock. USB Type-C allows you to charge your devices up to 100W, which is enough to charge most laptops. This means you can use a single USB Type-C cable to transfer data while you charge it.

Apple also switched to USB Type-C, leaving only such ports on their MacBooks. By the way, the 2016 MacBook is completely made on Kaby Lake. In addition to MacBook Pro laptops, many leading brand laptops support Thunderbolt 3: ASUS Transformer 3 and Transformer 3 Pro, Alienware 13, Dell XPS 13, HP Elite X2 and Folio, HP Specter and Specter x360, Razer Blade Stealth, Lenovo ThinkPad Y900, and dozens more with Thunderbolt 3 ports.

However, you need to understand that not all USB Type-C ports support Thunderbolt 3 - these can also be regular USB 3.1 controllers. They are electrically compatible, but the controller's Thunderbolt features will not work. This means that Thunderbolt devices can be connected to a regular USB-C port and vice versa, they will only work as a regular USB data port.

Thunderbolt 3 also supports port security features to keep unauthorized devices from connecting. These features are built into the BIOS, but they can be disabled. You can configure various port security policies - block ports, ask the user when connecting a new device, or connect without any questions.

Summing up what we currently have on the market, these are Kaby Lake processors that are very successful in terms of graphics core and heat dissipation, one might say, ideal for laptops of various classes, but not much different in performance from their predecessors. In general, for those who do not need all the chips listed above, and who use an external video card, this purchase does not make sense in terms of upgrade.

8th generation - Lake Coffee

The current 2017 turned out to be very eventful in the processor world. AMD has released very successful processors Ryzen and Threadripper, which finally came to court, so to speak, at the right time and for the right price, which is why they became so popular among ordinary buyers. Intel, on the other hand, released Core X with 14, 16 and even 18 cores, so to speak, with an eye to the future. But we are waiting for a miracle - the implementation of the continuation of Moore's law, that is, the transition to a 10-nanometer process technology. And it didn't happen again.

Is it good or bad? Probably, from a marketing point of view, this is a smart move to leave the new technical process in reserve, for growth. But something needs to be released. And Intel fired - finally, for the first time, following the ideology of AMD, they went to increase the number of cores. And now the Core i7 has 6 cores / 12 threads, the Core i5 also has 6, and the i3 now has 4 full cores, now it’s generally like the whole i5 before!

So, the new top Intel Core i7-8700 has twice as many cores on one chip, which became possible due to another optimization of the core layout, a more uniform arrangement of transistors on the chip. The crystal area increased by 16% to 150 mm 2 . The L1 cache grew a little, the L2 cache became 1.5 MB, and the L3 cache - 12 MB. These changes are logical for servicing the computational work of the cores. However, this is still less than Ryzen, which has 4 and 16 MB caches in the second and third levels, respectively, at a significantly lower price. Although this does not directly say anything, because the efficiency of working with the cache depends on the length of the pipeline and the hit accuracy when branching. But potentially it is a loss.

The new processor now supports only DDR4 memory, and the integrated memory controller increased the frequencies to 2666 MHz, which is a record for working with memory. The TDP level has increased from 91W to 95W in non-overclocked mode and up to 145W in turbo mode, which will require a very good cooling system. The frequency is raised due to the high multiplier - the maximum multiplier of the bus frequency is 43x.

Despite the fact that the number of threads has increased to 12 due to Hyper-Threading, the number of instructions executed per clock (IPC) has remained the same as in Skylake and Kaby Lake. And this means that the architecture of the computing unit (ALU), the pipeline and the instruction prefetch unit has not changed. In other words, it's the same architecture with the same set of instructions.

The graphics core has not changed - Intel UHD Graphics 630, however the GPU frequency is slightly increased. Structurally, there are still 24 computing units. Graphics take up about a third of the entire die.

What has become unpleasant, but expected news is that new processors will not be able to work with old chipsets. And it's not even a connector - the old one will be used LGA1151. The fact is that due to the new layout of the core, the power supply of the crystal will also change, which leads to a different pinout. There are more Vcc (power) and Vss (ground) pins. As a result, Intel next introduced the 300th family of chipsets, the top model of which is Z370. Surprisingly, the Z370 is no different from its predecessor, the Z270, even with first-generation USB 3.1. All this in a compartment creates a not too pleasant impression of the new product.

Perhaps the best news is that the once-youngest Core i3 has finally become a full-fledged quad-core processor. Most likely, he will receive the greatest popularity in his segment.

Speaking about performance, we can state that the differences compared to the previous generation for the most part will be noticeable only when working with video (especially 4K up to 30%), graphics (in Adobe Photoshop up to 60%) and games (up to 25%). The weighted average productivity will increase by no more than 15%.

The result is banal: it is impossible to judge the performance of any central processor by only one parameter. Only a combination of characteristics gives an understanding of what kind of chip it is. Narrowing the range of processors under consideration is very simple. AMD's modern ones are FX chips for the AM3+ platform and A10/8/6 hybrid solutions of the 6000 and 7000 series (plus Athlon X4) for FM2+. Intel has Haswell processors for the LGA1150 platform, Haswell-E (in fact, one model) for LGA2011-v3 and the latest Skylake for LGA1151.

AMD Processors

I repeat, the complexity of choosing a processor lies in the fact that there are a lot of models on sale. Elementary confused in this variety of markings. AMD has A8 and A10 hybrid processors. Both lines include only quad-core chips. But what's the difference? We'll talk about this.

Let's start with positioning. AMD FX processors are the top chips for the AM3+ platform. Based on them, game system blocks and workstations are assembled. Hybrid processors (with integrated video) of the A-series, as well as Athlon X4 (without integrated graphics) are middle-class chips for the FM2+ platform.

The AMD FX series is divided into quad-core, six-core, and eight-core models. All processors do not have an integrated graphics core. Therefore, a full-fledged assembly will require either a motherboard with integrated video, or a discrete 3D accelerator.

Marking, positioning, use cases

This summer, Intel launched a new, fourth-generation Intel Core architecture, code-named Haswell (processor markings start with the number "4" and look like 4xxx). The main direction of development of Intel processors now sees the increase in energy efficiency. Therefore, the latest generations of Intel Core show not such a strong increase in performance, but their overall energy consumption is constantly decreasing - due to the architecture, the technical process, and effective management of component consumption. The only exception is integrated graphics, whose performance has been growing noticeably from generation to generation, albeit at the expense of deteriorating power consumption.

This strategy predictably brings to the fore those devices in which energy efficiency is important - laptops and ultrabooks, as well as the only emerging (because in its previous form it could be attributed exclusively to the undead) class of Windows tablets, the main role in the development of which should be played by new processors with reduced energy consumption.

As a reminder, we recently released brief overviews of the Haswell architecture, which are quite applicable to both desktop and mobile solutions:

In addition, the performance of quad-core Core i7 processors was explored in the article comparing desktop and mobile processors. The performance of the Core i7-4500U was also separately examined. Finally, there are reviews of Haswell laptops, including performance testing: MSI GX70 on the most powerful Core i7-4930MX processor, HP Envy 17-j005er.

This article will focus on the Haswell mobile line as a whole. AT first part we will consider the division of Haswell mobile processors into series and lines, the principles of creating indexes for mobile processors, their positioning and the approximate level of performance of different series within the entire line. In second part- let's take a closer look at the specifications of each series and line and their main features, and also move on to the conclusions.

For those who are not familiar with the Intel Turbo Boost algorithm, we have posted a brief description of this technology at the end of the article. Recommended with him before reading the rest of the material.

New letter indexes

Traditionally, all Intel Core processors are divided into three lines:

• Intel Core i3
• Intel Core i5
• Intel Core i7

The official position of Intel (which company representatives usually voice when answering the question why there are both dual-core and quad-core models among the Core i7) is that the processor is assigned to one or another line based on its overall performance level. However, in most cases, there are architectural differences between processors of different lines.

But already in Sandy Bridge, another division of processors has appeared, and in Ivy Bridge, another division of processors has become complete - into mobile and ultra-mobile solutions, depending on the level of energy efficiency. Moreover, today it is this classification that is basic: both the mobile and ultra-mobile lines have their own Core i3 / i5 / i7 with very different levels of performance. In Haswell, on the one hand, the division deepened, and on the other hand, they tried to make the line more slender, not so misleading by duplicating indices. In addition, another class has finally taken shape - ultra-mobile processors with the Y index. Ultra-mobile and mobile solutions are still marked with the letters U and M.

So, in order not to be confused, first we will analyze which letter indices are used in the modern line of fourth-generation Intel Core mobile processors:

• M - mobile processor (TDP 37-57 W);
• U - ultra mobile processor (TDP 15-28 W);
• Y - processor with extremely low consumption (TDP 11.5 W);
• Q - quad-core processor;
• X - extreme processor (top solution);
• H - processor for BGA1364 packaging.

Since TDP (thermal package) has already been mentioned, let's dwell on it in a little more detail. It should be borne in mind that TDP in modern Intel processors is not “maximum”, but “nominal”, that is, it is calculated based on the load in real tasks when operating at the standard frequency, and when Turbo Boost is turned on and the frequency is increased, heat dissipation goes beyond the declared nominal heat pack - there is a separate TDP for this. The TDP is also determined when operating at the minimum frequency. Thus, there are as many as three TDPs. This article uses nominal TDP in tables.

• The standard nominal TDP for mobile quad-core Core i7 processors is 47W, for dual-core processors - 37W;
• The letter X in the name raises the thermal package from 47 to 57 W (now there is only one such processor on the market - 4930MX);
• Standard TDP for U-series ultra mobile processors is 15 W;
• Standard TDP for Y-series processors - 11.5 W;

Digital indices

The indexes of fourth-generation Intel Core processors with Haswell architecture begin with the number 4, which just indicates that they belong to this generation (for Ivy Bridge, the indices began with 3, for Sandy Bridge - with 2). The second digit indicates belonging to the line of processors: 0 and 1 - i3, 2 and 3 - i5, 5–9 - i7.

Now let's analyze the last digits in the name of the processors.

The number 8 at the end means that this processor model has an increased TDP (from 15 to 28 W) and a significantly higher nominal frequency. Another distinguishing feature of these processors is the Iris 5100 graphics. They are focused on professional mobile systems that require stable high performance in all conditions for constant work with resource-intensive tasks. They also have overclocking with Turbo Boost, but due to the strongly raised nominal frequency, the difference between the nominal and maximum is not too great.

The number 2 at the end of the name indicates a TDP reduced from 47 to 37 W for a processor from the i7 line. But you have to pay for lower TDP with lower frequencies - minus 200 MHz to the base and boost frequencies.

If the second digit from the end in the name is 5, then the processor has a GT3 - HD 5xxx graphics core. Thus, if the last two digits in the processor name are 50, then the GT3 HD 5000 graphics core is installed in it, if 58 - then Iris 5100, and if 50H - then Iris Pro 5200, because Iris Pro 5200 is only available for processors BGA1364.

For example, let's analyze the processor with the 4950HQ index. The name of the processor contains H - means BGA1364 package; contains 5 - means GT3 HD 5xxx graphics core; combination of 50 and H gives Iris Pro 5200; Q - quad-core. And since quad-core processors are only in the Core i7 line, this is the mobile Core i7 series. This is confirmed by the second digit of the name - 9. We get: 4950HQ is a mobile quad-core eight-thread processor of the Core i7 line with a TDP of 47 W with GT3e Iris Pro 5200 graphics in BGA design.

Now that we have dealt with the names, we can talk about the division of processors into lines and series, or, more simply, about market segments.

4th generation Intel Core series and lines

So, all modern Intel mobile processors are divided into three large groups depending on power consumption: mobile (M), ultra-mobile (U) and "ultra-mobile" (Y), as well as three lines (Core i3, i5, i7) depending on performance. As a result, we can make a matrix that will allow the user to choose the processor that best suits his tasks. Let's try to bring all the data into a single table.

Series/line	Options	Core i3	Core i5	Core i7
Mobile (M)	Segment	laptops	laptops	laptops
	cores/threads	2/4	2/4	2/4, 4/8
	Max. frequencies	2.5 GHz	2.8/3.5 GHz	3/3.9 GHz
	turbo boost	No	there is	there is
	TDP	high	high	maximum
	Performance	above average	high	maximum
	autonomy	below the average	below the average	low
Ultramobile (U)	Segment	laptops / ultrabooks	laptops / ultrabooks	laptops / ultrabooks
	cores/threads	2/4	2/4	2/4
	Max. frequencies	2 GHz	2.6/3.1 GHz	2.8/3.3 GHz
	turbo boost	No	there is	there is
	TDP	average	average	average
	Performance	below the average	above average	high
	autonomy	above average	above average	above average
Ultra-ultramobile (Y)	Segment	ultrabooks / tablets	ultrabooks / tablets	ultrabooks / tablets
	cores/threads	2/4	2/4	2/4
	Max. frequencies	1.3 GHz	1.4/1.9 GHz	1.7/2.9 GHz
	turbo boost	No	there is	there is
	TDP	short	short	short
	Performance	low	low	low
	autonomy	high	high	high

For example: a customer needs a laptop with high processor performance and moderate cost. Since a laptop, and even a productive one, requires an M-series processor, and the requirement for moderate cost forces one to stop at the Core i5 line. We emphasize once again that, first of all, you should pay attention not to the line (Core i3, i5, i7), but to the series, because each series may have its own Core i5, but the performance level of Core i5 from two different series will be significantly differ. For example, the Y-series is very economical, but has low operating frequencies, and the Y-series Core i5 processor will be less powerful than the U-series Core i3 processor. And the mobile Core i5 processor may well be more productive than the ultra-mobile Core i7.

Approximate performance level depending on the line

Let's try to go a step further and compile a theoretical rating that would clearly demonstrate the difference between processors of different lines. For 100 points, we will take the weakest processor presented - a dual-core four-thread i3-4010Y with a clock speed of 1300 MHz and a 3 MB L3 cache. For comparison, we take the highest frequency processor (at the time of this writing) from each line. We decided to calculate the main rating by the overclocking frequency (for those processors that have Turbo Boost), in parentheses - the rating for the nominal frequency. Thus, a dual-core, four-threaded processor with a maximum frequency of 2600 MHz will receive 200 conditional points. Increasing the third-level cache from 3 to 4 MB will bring it a 2-5% (data obtained from real tests and research) increase in conditional points, and an increase in the number of cores from 2 to 4 will double the number of points, which is also achievable in reality with a good multi-threaded optimization.

Once again, we strongly draw your attention to the fact that the rating is theoretical and is based mostly on the technical parameters of the processors. In reality, a large number of factors are combined, so the performance gain over the weakest model in the line will almost certainly not be as big as in theory. Thus, one should not directly transfer the obtained ratio to real life - one can draw final conclusions only from the results of testing in real applications. Nevertheless, this estimate allows us to roughly estimate the place of the processor in the lineup and its positioning.

So, some preliminary notes:

• Core i7 U-series processors will be about 10% ahead of Core i5 due to slightly higher clock speeds and more L3 cache.
• The difference between the Core i5 and Core i3 U-series processors with a TDP of 28W without Turbo Boost is about 30%, i.e. ideally, performance will also differ by 30%. If we take into account the capabilities of Turbo Boost, then the difference in frequencies will be about 55%. If we compare the Core i5 and Core i3 U-series processors with a TDP of 15 W, then with stable operation at the maximum frequency, the Core i5 will have a frequency of 60% higher. However, its nominal frequency is slightly lower, i.e. when operating at the nominal frequency, it can even be slightly inferior to the Core i3.
• In the M-series, the presence of 4 cores and 8 threads in the Core i7 plays a big role, but here we must remember that this advantage is manifested only in optimized software (usually professional). Core i7 processors with two cores will have slightly better performance due to higher overclocking frequencies and a slightly larger L3 cache.
• In the Y series, the Core i5 processor has a base frequency of 7.7% and an overclocking frequency of 50% higher than the Core i3. But in this case, there are additional considerations - the same energy efficiency, the noise of the cooling system, etc.
• If we compare the processors of the U and Y series, then only the frequency gap between the U- and Y-processors of the Core i3 is 54%, and for the Core i5 processors - 63% at the maximum overclocking frequency.

So, let's calculate the score for each line. Recall that the main score is calculated according to the maximum overclocking frequencies, the score in brackets - according to the nominal ones (that is, without overclocking using Turbo Boost). We also calculated the performance factor per watt.

¹ max. - at maximum overclocking, nom. - at rated frequency
² coefficient - conventional performance divided by TDP and multiplied by 100
³ Overclocking TDP data for these processors is unknown

From the table below, the following observations can be made:

• The U and M-series dual-core Core i7 processors are only marginally faster than the equivalent Core i5 processors. This applies to comparisons for both base and overclocking frequencies.
• The Core i5 processors of the U and M series, even at the base frequency, should be noticeably faster than the Core i3 of similar series, and in the Boost mode they will go far ahead.
• In the Y series, the difference between processors at minimum frequencies is small, but with Turbo Boost overclocking, the Core i5 and Core i7 should go far ahead. Another thing is that the magnitude and, most importantly, the stability of overclocking are very dependent on the cooling efficiency. And with this, given the orientation of these processors to tablets (especially fanless ones), there may be problems.
• The Core i7 of the U-series is almost on par with the performance of the Core i5 of the M-series. There are other factors (it's harder to achieve stability due to less efficient cooling, and it costs more), but overall it's a good result.

As for the ratio of power consumption and performance rating, we can draw the following conclusions:

• Despite the increase in TDP when the processor switches to Boost mode, energy efficiency increases. This is because the relative increase in frequency is greater than the relative increase in TDP;
• Processors of different series (M, U, Y) are ranked not only by decreasing TDP, but also by increasing energy efficiency - for example, Y-series processors show greater energy efficiency than U-series processors;
• It is worth noting that with an increase in the number of cores, and hence the number of threads, energy efficiency also increases. This can be explained by the fact that only the processor cores themselves are doubled, but not the accompanying DMI, PCI Express and ICP controllers.

From the latter, an interesting conclusion can be drawn: if the application is well parallelized, then a quad-core processor will be more energy efficient than a dual-core processor: it will finish computing faster and return to idle mode. As a result, multi-core could be the next step in the fight for energy efficiency. In principle, this trend can also be noted in the ARM camp.

So, although the rating is purely theoretical, and it's not a fact that it accurately reflects the real alignment of forces, even it allows us to draw certain conclusions regarding the distribution of processors in the line, their energy efficiency and the ratio of these parameters to each other.

Haswell vs. Ivy Bridge

Although Haswell processors have been on the market for a long time, the presence of Ivy Bridge processors in ready-made solutions even now remains quite high. From the point of view of the consumer, there were no special revolutions during the transition to Haswell (although the increase in energy efficiency for some segments looks impressive), which raises questions: is it worth it to choose the fourth generation or can you get by with the third?

It is difficult to directly compare fourth-generation Core processors with the third, because the manufacturer has changed the TDP limits:

• the M series of the third generation Core has a TDP of 35W, while the fourth has a TDP of 37W;
• the U series of the third generation Core has a TDP of 17W, while the fourth has a TDP of 15W;
• the Y-series of the third generation Core has a TDP of 13W, while the fourth has a TDP of 11.5W.

And if for the ultra-mobile lines the TDP has dropped, then for the more productive M series it has even grown. However, let's try to make an approximate comparison:

• The top quad-core processor Core i7 of the third generation had a frequency of 3 (3.9) GHz, the fourth generation had the same 3 (3.9) GHz, that is, the difference in performance can only be due to architectural improvements - no more than 10%. Although, it is worth noting that with heavy use of FMA3, the fourth generation will outrun the third by 30-70%.
• The top dual-core Core i7 processors of the third generation of the M-series and U-series had frequencies of 2.9 (3.6) GHz and 2 (3.2) GHz, respectively, and the fourth - 2.9 (3.6) GHz and 2, 1(3.3) GHz. As you can see, the frequencies, if they have grown, are insignificant, so the performance level can grow only minimally, due to the optimization of the architecture. Again, if the software knows about FMA3 and knows how to actively use this extension, then the fourth generation will have a solid advantage.
• The top dual-core Core i5 processors of the third generation of the M-series and U-series had frequencies of 2.8 (3.5) GHz and 1.8 (2.8) GHz, respectively, and the fourth - 2.8 (3.5) GHz and 1.9(2.9) GHz. The situation is similar to the previous one.
• The top dual-core Core i3 processors of the third generation of the M-series and U-series had frequencies of 2.5 GHz and 1.8 GHz, respectively, and the fourth - 2.6 GHz and 2 GHz. The situation is repeating itself.
• The top dual-core Core i3, i5 and i7 processors of the third generation of the Y-series had frequencies of 1.4 GHz, 1.5 (2.3) GHz and 1.5 (2.6) GHz, respectively, and the fourth - 1.3 GHz, 1.4(1.9) GHz and 1.7(2.9) GHz.

In general, the clock speeds in the new generation have practically not increased, so a slight performance gain is obtained only by optimizing the architecture. The fourth generation Core will get a noticeable advantage when using software optimized for FMA3. Well, do not forget about a faster graphics core - optimization can bring a significant increase there.

As for the relative performance difference within the lines, the third and fourth generation Intel Core generations are close in this indicator.

Thus, we can conclude that in the new generation, Intel decided to reduce TDP instead of increasing operating frequencies. As a result, the increase in the speed of work is lower than it could be, but it was possible to achieve an increase in energy efficiency.

Suitable Tasks for Different 4th Generation Intel Core Processors

Now that we have figured out the performance, we can roughly estimate what tasks this or that fourth-generation Core line is best suited for. Let's put the data in a table.

Series/line	Core i3	Core i5	Core i7
Mobile M	surfing the web office environment old and casual games	All of the above plus: professional environment at the edge of comfort	All of the above plus: professional environment (3D modeling, CAD, professional photo and video processing, etc.)
Ultramobile U	surfing the web office environment old and casual games	All of the above plus: corporate environment (e.g. accounting systems) undemanding PC games with discrete graphics professional environment on the verge of comfort (it is unlikely that you will be able to work comfortably in the same 3ds max)
Ultra-Mobile Y	surfing the web simple office environment old and casual games		office environment old and casual games

This table also clearly shows that, first of all, you should pay attention to the processor series (M, U, Y), and only then to the line (Core i3, i5, i7), since the line determines the ratio of processor performance only within the series, and performance varies markedly between series. This is clearly seen in the comparison of i3 U-series and i5 Y-series: the first in this case will be more productive than the second.

So what conclusions can be drawn from this table? Core i3 processors of any series, as we have already noted, are interesting primarily for their price. Therefore, it is worth paying attention to them if you are constrained by funds and are ready to put up with a loss in both performance and energy efficiency.

The mobile Core i7 stands apart due to architectural differences: four cores, eight threads and noticeably more L3 cache. As a result, it is able to work with resource-intensive professional applications and show an extremely high level of performance for a mobile system. But for this, the software must be optimized for the use of a large number of cores - it will not reveal its advantages in single-threaded software. And secondly, these processors require a bulky cooling system, i.e. they are installed only in large laptops with a large thickness, and they do not have much autonomy.

Core i5 mobile series provide a good level of performance, sufficient to perform not only home-office, but also some semi-professional tasks. For example, for photo and video processing. In all respects (energy consumption, heat generation, autonomy), these processors occupy an intermediate position between the Core i7 M-series and the ultra-mobile line. In general, this is a balanced solution, suitable for those who value performance more than a thin and light body.

The dual-core mobile Core i7 is about the same as the M-series Core i5, only slightly more powerful and usually noticeably more expensive.

Ultra-mobile Core i7 have about the same level of performance as mobile Core i5, but with caveats: if the cooling system can withstand prolonged operation at increased frequency. Yes, and they get pretty hot under load, which often leads to strong heating of the entire laptop case. Apparently, they are quite expensive, so their installation is justified only for top models. But they can be put in thin laptops and ultrabooks, providing a high level of performance with a thin body and good autonomy. This makes them an excellent choice for frequent travel professional users who value energy efficiency and light weight, but often require high performance.

The ultra-mobile Core i5 show lower performance compared to the "big brother" of the series, but they can cope with any office load, while they have good energy efficiency and are much more affordable in price. In general, this is a universal solution for users who do not work in resource-intensive applications, but are limited to office programs and the Internet, and at the same time would like to have a laptop / ultrabook suitable for traveling, i.e. light, light weight and long working from batteries.

Finally, the Y-series also stands apart. In terms of performance, its Core i7, with luck, will reach the ultra-mobile Core i5, but, by and large, no one expects this from it. For the Y series, the main thing is high energy efficiency and low heat generation, which makes it possible to create fanless systems as well. As for performance, the minimum acceptable level is sufficient, which does not cause irritation.

Briefly about Turbo Boost

In case some of our readers have forgotten how Turbo Boost overclocking technology works, we offer you a brief description of its work.

Roughly speaking, the Turbo Boost system can dynamically increase the processor frequency in excess of the set one due to the fact that it constantly monitors whether the processor is out of the normal operating modes.

The processor can only work in a certain temperature range, i.e. its performance depends on heating, and heating depends on the ability of the cooling system to effectively remove heat from it. But since it is not known in advance which cooling system the processor will work with in the user's system, two parameters are indicated for each processor model: the operating frequency and the amount of heat that must be removed from the processor at maximum load at this frequency. Since these parameters depend on the efficiency and proper operation of the cooling system, as well as external conditions (first of all, ambient temperature), the manufacturer had to underestimate the frequency of the processor so that even under the most unfavorable operating conditions it would not lose stability. Turbo Boost technology monitors the internal parameters of the processor and allows it, if external conditions are favorable, to work at a higher frequency.

Intel originally explained that Turbo Boost technology uses "thermal inertia effect". Most of the time in modern systems, the processor is idle, but from time to time for a short period of time it is required to perform at its maximum. If at this moment we strongly increase the frequency of the processor, then it will cope with the task faster and return to the idle state earlier. At the same time, the processor temperature does not rise immediately, but gradually, so during short-term operation at a very high frequency, the processor will not have time to heat up so as to go beyond the safe limits.

In reality, it quickly became clear that with a good cooling system, the processor is able to work under load even at an increased frequency indefinitely. Thus, for a long time, the maximum overclocking frequency was absolutely working, and the processor returned to the nominal value only in extreme cases or if the manufacturer made a low-quality cooling system for a particular laptop.

In order to prevent overheating and failure of the processor, the Turbo Boost system in the modern implementation constantly monitors the following parameters of its operation:

• chip temperature;
• consumed current;
• power consumption;
• the number of loaded components.

Modern systems based on Ivy Bridge are capable of operating at an increased frequency in almost all modes, except for the simultaneous serious load on the central processor and graphics. As for Intel Haswell, we do not yet have sufficient statistics on the behavior of this platform under overclocking.

Note. author: It is worth noting that the temperature of the chip indirectly affects the power consumption - this effect becomes apparent upon closer examination of the physical structure of the crystal itself, since the electrical resistance of semiconductor materials increases with temperature, and this in turn leads to an increase in electricity consumption. Thus, the processor at a temperature of 90 degrees will consume more electricity than at a temperature of 40 degrees. And since the processor “warms up” both the PCB of the motherboard with tracks and the surrounding components, their loss of electricity to overcome higher resistance also affects power consumption. This conclusion is easily confirmed by overclocking both "in the air" and extreme. All overclockers know that a more productive cooler allows you to get additional megahertz, and the effect of superconductivity of conductors at a temperature close to absolute zero, when the electrical resistance tends to zero, is familiar to everyone from school physics. That is why, when overclocked with liquid nitrogen cooling, it is possible to achieve such high frequencies. Returning to the dependence of electrical resistance on temperature, we can also say that to some extent the processor also heats itself up: when the temperature rises, when the cooling system cannot cope, the electrical resistance also increases, which in turn increases power consumption. And this leads to an increase in heat dissipation, which leads to an increase in temperature ... In addition, do not forget that high temperatures shorten the life of the processor. Although manufacturers claim relatively high maximum temperatures for chips, it is still worth keeping the temperature as low as possible.

By the way, it is likely that "turning" the fan at higher speeds, when due to it the system's power consumption increases, is more profitable in terms of power consumption than having a processor with a high temperature, which will lead to power losses due to increased resistance.

As you can see, temperature may not be a direct limiting factor for Turbo Boost, that is, the processor will have a completely acceptable temperature and not go into throttling, but it indirectly affects another limiting factor - power consumption. Therefore, you should not forget about the temperature.

Summing up, Turbo Boost technology allows, under favorable external operating conditions, to increase the processor frequency beyond the guaranteed nominal value and thus provide a much higher level of performance. This property is especially valuable in mobile systems, where it provides a good balance between performance and heat.

But it should be remembered that the reverse side of the coin is the inability to estimate (predict) the net performance of the processor, because it will depend on external factors. This is probably one of the reasons for the appearance of processors with "8" at the end of the model name - with "raised" nominal operating frequencies and increased TDP because of this. They are intended for those products for which stable high performance under load is more important than energy efficiency.

The second part of the article provides a detailed description of all modern series and lines of Intel Haswell processors, including the technical characteristics of all available processors. And also conclusions are drawn about the applicability of certain models.