Intel Core 7 240H vs Intel Core Ultra 7 255H

Intel Core 7 240H

The Intel Core 7 240H is a high-end mobile CPU for laptops of the Raptor Lake-H series (based on the Alder Lake architecture). It was announced in late 2024 and offers 6 performance cores (P-cores, Golden Cove architecture) and 4 of the 8 efficient cores possible (E-cores, Gracemont architecture). The P-cores support Hyper-Threading for 16 threads when combined with the E-cores. The clock rates range from 2.5 to 5.2 GHz (single-core boost) on the performance cluster and 1.8 to 4 GHz on the efficient cluster. The performance of the E-cores should be similar to old Skylake cores (comparable to the Core i7-6700HQ). All cores can use up to 24 MB L3 cache.

Compared to the older Core i7-13620H, the Core 7 240H offers higher clock speeds (especially Turbo Boost) and support for DDR5-5600.

Performance

Thanks to the improved clock speeds, the Core 7 240H should be able to slightly best the old i7-13620H. Still, the faster i7 models of the 13th gen offer more E-cores and therefore a clearly better multi-threaded performance.

Features

The integrated memory controller supports various memory types up to DDR5-5600 (up from DDR5-5200 of the 12th gen.). The Thread Director (in hardware) can help the operating system to decide which thread to use on the performance or efficient cores for the best performance. For AI tasks, the CPU also integrates GNA 3.0 and DL Boost (via AVX2). Quick Sync in version 8 is the same as in the Rocket Lake CPUs and supports MPEG-2, AVC, VC-1 decode, JPEG, VP8 decode, VP9, HEVC, and AV1 decode in hardware. The CPU now supports PCIe 5.0 x8 for a GPU and two PCIe 4.0 x4 for SSDs.

The integrated graphics adapter is based on the Xe-architecture and offers 64 of the 96 EUs (Execution Units) possible, clocked at up to 1.5GHz.

Power consumption

The Core 7 240H is rated at a TDP of 55W (PL1, 115W PL2) and is manufactured on an improved 10nm process (Intel 7) that allows for higher clock speeds compared to the 12th gen CPUs.

Intel Core Ultra 7 255H

The Intel Core Ultra 7 255H is a mobile high-end CPU for larger notebooks based on the Arrow Lake architecture. It offers 16 cores consisting of 6 fast performance cores (Lion Cove) with up to 5.1 GHz and 8 smaller efficiency cores (Skymont) with up to 4.4 GHz clock speed and two additional "low power" efficiency cores with up to 2.5 GHz (Skymont). The CPU has access to 24 MB of cache and is specified with a TDP of 28 watt (PL1, 115W PL2).

The SoC integrates a small dedicated NPU called AI Boost with 13 TOPS (Int8) and optionally supports vPro Essentials. The integrated memory controller supports up to 192 GB LPDDR5/x-8400 or DDR5-6400 (dual channel). The integrated GPU (iGPU) is an Intel Arc 140T graphics card which offers eight Xe cores with up to 2.25 GHz.

Performance - High End

The Core Ultra 7 is superior to the top model Core Ultra 9 285H as only the maximum Turbo frequency is 200 MHz lower. Due to the improved IPC of the cores (especially the efficiency cores), the CPU should perform slightly below the level of the old Raptor Lake Core Core 9 270H (6 + 8 cores, max 5.8 / 4.1 GHz). This makes the CPU very suitable for demanding tasks such as high-end gaming and content creation.

Chiplet design

Like the desktop and HX chips, the Arrow Lake-H chips are based on individual chiplets that are placed on a 22nm base tile from Intel using Foveros 3D packaging. The CPU part comes from TSMC using the modern N3B (3nm) process. As with HX, the GPU also is produced at TSMC and is manufactured using the N5P process. SoC and I/O Tile are also from TSMC but in the older N6 process.