Intel Pentium Gold 6405U vs Intel Core i7-10510U

Intel Pentium Gold 6405U

The Intel Pentium Gold 6405U is a power efficient entry-level dual-core SoC for notebooks based on the Comet Lake (CML-U) generation and was announced in October 2019. Compared to the similar Whiskey Lake Pentium 5405U processors, the difference is the higher clock speed (+100 MHz) and support for faster memory. The processor cores are clocked at 2.4 GHz (no Turbo). Thanks to HyperThreading 4 threads can be used. More information on Comet Lake and all the models and articles on it can be found here.

Due to the 100 MHz higher clock speed, the Pentium Gold 6405U should be slightly faster than the old Pentium 5405U and therefore in the entry level of mobile processors. The missing Turbo and only two cores are definitely a downside and therefore the CPU is best used for simple tasks like browsing and office programs. Compared to the faster Core i3, i5 and i7 Comet Lake models, the Pentium does not support SSE (2).

The integrated graphics card is still the same as in the previous generations. It is called only Intel UHD Graphics but is still the same Intel UHD Graphics 610 like in the Pentium 5405U. Furthermore, the SoC integrates a VP9 and H.265 de- and encoder and an integrated dual channel LPDDR3-2133/DDR4-2400 memory controller (compared to DDR4-2666 in the faster Core i3).

The chip is still produced in the 14nm++ process as Whiskey Lake. The TDP (PL1) is specified at 15 Watts but can be lowered to 12.5 Watt although the CPU then only runs at 800 MHz.

Intel Core i7-10510U

The Intel Core i7-10510U is a power efficient quad-core SoC for notebooks based on the Comet Lake (CML-U) generation and was announced in August 2019. Compared to the similar Whiskey Lake processors (e.g.& Core i7-8665U), the only difference is support for higher memory speeds (DDR4-2666, LPDDR4-2933) and two additional cores in the top model (not in this i7-10510U). The processor cores are clocked between 1.8 and 4.9 GHz (all 4 cores 4.3 GHz max). Thanks to HyperThreading 8 threads can be used. More information on Comet Lake and all the models and articles on it can be found here.

The integrated graphics adapter however is still the same as in the previous generations. It should be still called Intel HD Graphics 620 and clock from 300 - 1150 MHz in the i7. Furthermore, the SoC integrates a VP9 and H.265 de- and encoder and an integrated dual channel DDR4-2666 / LPDDR4-2933 memory controller.

Performance

The average 10510U in our database proves to be an OK mid-range option, its multi-thread benchmark scores hovering close to those of AMD Ryzen 7 2700U and Intel Core i5-8259U. While not as impressive as the hexa-core Core i7-10710U, the Core i7 will make most customers happy, providing for short load times and generally pain-free experience.

Power consumption

This Core i7 has a default TDP (also known as the long-term power limit) of 15 W, a value that laptop manufacturers are free to change to anything between 10 W and 25 W resulting in corresponding performance and clock speed changes. Choosing the lowest value possible will allow for passively cooled tablets, laptops, mini-PCs.

The quad-core Intel CPU is built with a fairly old, as of early 2023, 14 nm Intel process for lower-than-average energy efficiency.