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Intel Core i7-1255U

Intel i7-1255U

The Intel Core i7-1255U is a high-end mobile CPU for thin and light laptops based on the Alder Lake architecture. It was announced in early 2022 and offers 2  performance cores (P-cores, Golden Cove architecture) and 8 efficient cores (E-cores, Gracemont architecture). The P-cores support Hyper-Threading leading to 12 supported threads when combined with the E-cores. The clock rate ranges from 1.7 to 4.7 GHz on the performance cluster and 1.2 to 3.5 GHz on the efficient cluster. The performance of the E-cores should be similar to old Skylake cores (compare to the Core i7-6700HQ). All cores can use up to 12 MB L3 cache. Compared to the i7-1265U (fastest U-series CPU at launch), the 1255 offers 100 MHz lower clocked CPU cores and only "Essentials" vPro management features. Compared to the P-series (28W) or H-series (45W), the 15W TDP may limit the sustained performance.

Performance

Thanks to the 10 cores, the multi-threaded performance should be clearly faster than the older quad-core Tiger Lake CPUs with 15 Watt (like the Intel Core i7-1160G7). The sustained performance will be limited by the TDP setting and thermals and therefore only short term loads. Thanks to the architectural improvements of the big Golden Cove cores, the single thread performance should be better than similar clocked Tiger Lake CPUs.

Architecture

The integrated memory controller supports various memory types up to DDR5-4800, DDR4-3200, LPDDR5-5200, and LPDDR4x-4267. The Thread Director (in hardware) can support 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 only supports PCIe 4.0 (x8 for a GPU and two x4 for SSDs).

The integrated graphics card is based on the Xe-architecture and offers all 96 EUs (Execution Units) operating at up to 1.25 GHz.

Power consumption

This Core i7 has a "minimum assured" power consumption of 12 W. Its Base power consumption sits at 15 W and its maximum Intel-recommended Turbo power consumption isn't supposed to exceed 55 W. All those values are too high to allow for pasisvely cooled designs.

Last but not the least, Core i7-1255U is built with Intel's third-gen 10 nm process marketed as Intel 7 for decent, as of late 2022, energy efficiency.

SeriesIntel Alder Lake-M
CodenameAlder Lake-U

Series: Alder Lake-M Alder Lake-U

Intel Core i7-1265U compare1.3 - 4.8 GHz10 / 12 cores12 MB L3
Intel Core i7-1255U « 1.2 - 4.7 GHz10 / 12 cores12 MB L3
Intel Core i5-1245U compare1.2 - 4.4 GHz10 / 12 cores12 MB L3
Intel Core i5-1235U compare0.9 - 4.4 GHz10 / 12 cores12 MB L3
Intel Core i7-1260U compare0.8 - 4.7 GHz10 / 12 cores12 MB L3
Intel Core i7-1250U compare0.8 - 4.7 GHz10 / 12 cores12 MB L3
Intel Core i5-1240U compare0.8 - 4.4 GHz10 / 12 cores12 MB L3
Intel Core i5-1230U compare0.7 - 4.4 GHz10 / 12 cores12 MB L3
Intel Core i3-1215U compare0.9 - 4.4 GHz6 / 8 cores10 MB L3
Intel Pentium 8505 compare0.9 - 4.4 GHz5 / 6 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i3-1210U compare0.7 - 4.4 GHz6 / 8 cores10 MB L3
Intel Pentium 8500 compare0.7 - 4.4 GHz5 / 6 cores8 MB L3
Intel Celeron 7305 compare0.9 - 1.1 GHz5 / 5 cores8 MB L3
Intel Celeron 7300 compare0.7 - 1 GHz5 / 5 cores8 MB L3
Clock Rate1200 - 4700 MHz
Level 1 Cache928 KB
Level 2 Cache9.5 MB
Level 3 Cache12 MB
Number of Cores / Threads10 / 12
Power Consumption (TDP = Thermal Design Power)15 Watt
Manufacturing Technology10 nm
Max. Temperature100 °C
SocketBGA1744
FeaturesThread Director
GPUIntel Iris Xe Graphics G7 96EUs ( - 1250 MHz)
64 Bit64 Bit support
Architecturex86
Announcement Date01/04/2022
Product Link (external)Intel Alder Lake-M i7-1255U

Benchmarks

Performance Rating - CB R15 + R20 + 7-Zip + X265 + Blender + 3DM11 CPU
39.9 pt (58%)
Cinebench R23 - Cinebench R23 Multi Core
min: 5269     avg: 8198     median: 8332 (14%)     max: 9628 Points
Cinebench R23 - Cinebench R23 Single Core
min: 1425     avg: 1649     median: 1656 (73%)     max: 1775 Points
Cinebench R20 - Cinebench R20 CPU (Single Core)
min: 550     avg: 635     median: 638 (73%)     max: 682 Points
Cinebench R20 - Cinebench R20 CPU (Multi Core)
min: 2095     avg: 3116     median: 3131 (13%)     max: 3702 Points
Cinebench R15 - Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64 Bit
min: 919     avg: 1365     median: 1400 (14%)     max: 1577 Points
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Cinebench R15 - Cinebench R15 CPU Single 64 Bit
min: 161     avg: 229.4     median: 238.5 (73%)     max: 251 Points
7-Zip 18.03 - 7-Zip 18.03 Multli Thread 4 runs
min: 24126     avg: 34066     median: 36825 (23%)     max: 37365 MIPS
7-Zip 18.03 - 7-Zip 18.03 Single Thread 4 runs
min: 5150     avg: 5308     median: 5256 (63%)     max: 5529 MIPS
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 - HWBOT x265 4k Preset
min: 6.31     avg: 9.2     median: 9.7 (21%)     max: 10.1 fps
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Blender - Blender 3.3 Classroom CPU *
min: 683     avg: 772     median: 723 (9%)     max: 1156 Seconds
Blender - Blender 2.79 BMW27 CPU *
min: 372     avg: 419.7     median: 383 (3%)     max: 601 Seconds
R Benchmark 2.5 - R Benchmark 2.5 *
min: 0.4688     avg: 0.5     median: 0.5 (11%)     max: 0.558 sec
3DMark 11 - 3DM11 Performance Physics
min: 8097     avg: 14121     median: 15314 (41%)     max: 16890 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Cloud Gate Physics
min: 7665     avg: 10433     median: 10520 (27%)     max: 12522 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Fire Strike Standard Physics
min: 11482     avg: 17380     median: 18157 (33%)     max: 20193 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Time Spy CPU
min: 1124     avg: 5468     median: 6140 (30%)     max: 7649 Points
Geekbench 5.2 - 5.5 - Geekbench 5.1 - 5.4 64 Bit Single-Core
min: 1560     avg: 1640     median: 1650.5 (71%)     max: 1712 points
Geekbench 5.2 - 5.5 - Geekbench 5.1 - 5.4 64 Bit Multi-Core
min: 4463     avg: 7315     median: 7989.5 (28%)     max: 8821 points
Geekbench 5.0 - Geekbench 5.0 64 Bit Single-Core
min: 1523     avg: 1607     median: 1610.5 (7%)     max: 1684 points
Geekbench 5.0 - Geekbench 5.0 64 Bit Multi-Core
min: 4557     avg: 6900     median: 7294.5 (23%)     max: 8452 points
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Kraken 1.1 Total Score *
min: 476.2     avg: 586     median: 571 (1%)     max: 727 ms
Octane V2 - Octane V2 Total Score
min: 75963     avg: 82625     median: 82948 (76%)     max: 88687 Points
WebXPRT 4 - WebXPRT 4 Score
min: 183.4     avg: 230     median: 232 (69%)     max: 249 Points
WebXPRT 3 - WebXPRT 3 Score
min: 200     avg: 274.6     median: 275 (57%)     max: 366 Points
PCMark for Android - PCM f. Android Storage 2.0 score
9895 Points (19%)
CrossMark - CrossMark Overall
min: 1329     avg: 1461     median: 1475 (57%)     max: 1573 Points
Power Consumption - Prime95 Power Consumption - external Monitor *
min: 24.3     avg: 43.1     median: 44 (8%)     max: 51.2 Watt
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Power Consumption - Cinebench R15 Multi Power Consumption - external Monitor *
min: 27.8     avg: 56.4     median: 55.6 (12%)     max: 75.9 Watt
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Power Consumption - Idle Power Consumption - external Monitor *
min: 4.09     avg: 6.5     median: 6.2 (5%)     max: 11.6 Watt
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Power Consumption - Idle Power Consumption 150cd 1min *
min: 3.55     avg: 9.4     median: 6.4 (8%)     max: 30.7 Watt
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Power Consumption - Cinebench R15 Multi Power Efficiency - external Monitor
min: 18.7     avg: 25     median: 24.5 (18%)     max: 33.1 Points per Watt
- Range of benchmark values for this graphics card
- Average benchmark values for this graphics card
* Smaller numbers mean a higher performance

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