Intel Core i7-4702MQ vs Intel Core i7-4940MX vs Intel Core i7-4910MQ

The Intel Core i7-4702MQ is a high-end quad-core processor for laptops. It is based on the Haswell architecture and manufactured in 22nm. Due to Hyperthreading, the four cores can handle up to eight threads in parallel leading to better utilization of the CPU. Each core offers a base speed of 2.2 GHz but can dynamically increase clock rates with Turbo Boost up to 2.9 GHz (for 4 active cores), 3.1 GHz (for 2 active cores) and 3.2 GHz (for 1 active core).

Haswell is the successor to the Ivy Bridge architecture with improvements on both GPU and CPU performance. The CPUs are produced in 22nm and offer an optimized branch prediction as well as additional execution ports. Furthermore, new features like AVX2 and FMA should increase the performance in future applications.

The performance of the Core i7-4702MQ is slightly above a similarly clocked Ivy Bridge processor due to the architectural improvements. As a result, overall performance is similar to the Ivy Bridge based Core i7-3630QM.

The integrated Intel HD Graphics 4600 offers 20 Execution Units (EUs) clocked at 400 MHz up to 1150 MHz with Turbo Boost, making it about 30 % faster than the HD 4000.

With a TDP of only 37 Watt, the Core i7-4702MQ is specified at the level of mobile dual-core CPUs. Therefore, even smaller laptops can use the Core i7.

The Intel Core i7-4910MQ is a high-end quad-core processor for laptops which has been launched in Q1/2014. It is based on the Haswell architecture and manufactured in 22nm. Due to Hyperthreading, the four cores can handle up to eight threads in parallel leading to better utilization of the CPU. Each core offers a base speed of 2.9 GHz but can dynamically increase clock rates with Turbo Boost up to 3.7 GHz (for 4 active cores), 3.8 GHz (for 2 active cores) and 3.9 GHz (for 1 active core).

Architecture

Haswell is the successor to the Ivy Bridge architecture with improvements on both GPU and CPU performance. The CPUs are produced in 22nm and offer an optimized branch prediction as well as additional execution ports, improving the performance per clock by 5 - 10 percent. Furthermore, new features like AVX2 and FMA should increase the performance in future applications.

Performance

Compared to the Core i7-4900MQ, the 4910MQ is clocked just 100 MHz higher and therefore only slightly faster. Overall, the performance is almost similar to the Core i7-4930MX. Even extremly demanding software or multitasking will be handled easily.

Graphics

The integrated Intel HD Graphics 4600 offers 20 Execution Units (EUs) clocked at 400 MHz up to 1300 MHz with Turbo Boost, making it about 30 % faster than the HD 4000. This is slightly slower than the AMD Radeon HD 8650G, but similar to a dedicated GeForce GT 720M.

Power Consumption

The i7-4910MQ is rated at a TDP of 47 W including graphics card, memory controller and VRMs.  Therefore, the CPU is only suited for laptops 15-inches or greater.