Intel Core i5-1034G1 vs AMD Ryzen 5 4600U vs Intel Core i5-1035G7

Intel Core i5-1034G1

The Intel Core i5-1034G1 is a power efficient quad-core SoC for laptops and Ultrabooks based on the Ice -Lake-U generation that was announced in Mai 2019 (Computex). It integrates four Sunnycove processor cores (8 threads thanks to HyperThreading) clocked at 0.8 (base) - 3.6 (single core Turbo) GHz. 2 cores can reach 3.6 GHz and all four 3.3 GHz using Turbo Boost. According to Intel the Sunnycove cores achieve 18% more IPCs (Instructions per Clock)  and therefore the CPU performance should be similar to the higher clocked Whiskey-Lake predecessors (e.g. Core i5-8365U with up to 4.1 GHz).

The biggest improvement for Ice-Lake is the integrated Gen 11 graphics card called UHD Graphics G1. The Core i5-1034G1 integrates the smallest GPU, the UHD Graphics that features 32 of the 64 CUs and clocks at 300 - 1050? MHz. The faster variants include Iris Plus G4 and G7.

Other improvements for Ice Lake are the AI hardware acceleration and the partial integration of Thunderbolt and Wifi 6 in the chip. The integrated DDR4 memory controller supports modules with up to 3200 MHz (and LPDDDR4 3733).

The Core i5-1034G1 is produced in the improved 10nm+ process at Intel (2nd generation) that should offer a comparable performance to the 7nm process at TSMC. The TDP is specified at 15 Watts and therefore the CPU can be used in thin and light laptops (but usually with a fan). Intel offers a configurable TDP of 7.5 - 25 Watts for the partners resulting in significant performance differences (due to longer periods of Turbo Boost).

AMD Ryzen 5 4600U

The AMD Ryzen 5 4600U is a processor for thin and light laptops based on the Renoir architecture. The 4600U integrates six cores based on the Zen 2 microarchitecture. They are clocked at 2.1 (guaranteed base clock) to 4 GHz (Turbo) with SMT / Hyperthreading support (12 threads). The chip is manufactured in the modern 7 nm process at TSMC and partly thanks to it AMD advertises a 2x improved performance per Watt for the Renoir chips.

With two less cores, the Ryzen 5 4600U is clearly slower than the Ryzen 7 4700U and 4800U in multi threaded workloads. However, it should still beat the fastest 15 Watt Ice Lake Intel Core i7-1065G7 (4 cores, 3.9 GHz). Thanks to the 4 GHz Boost clock, the single core performance should be similar. Therefore, the Ryzen 5 4600U is a very fast 15 Watt CPU and clearly faster than the old Ryzen 7 3700U.

In addition to the six CPU cores, the APU also integrates a Radeon RX Vega 6 integrated graphics card with 6 CUs and up to 1500 MHz. The dual channel memory controller supports DDR4-3200 and energy efficient LPDDR4-4266 RAM. Furthermore, 8 MB level 3 cache can be found on the chip. See our hub page on the Renoir Processors for more information.

The TDP of the APU is specified at 15 Watt (default) and can be configured from 10 to 25 Watt by the laptop vendor. That means the chip is intended for thin and light laptops (but with fans).

Intel Core i5-1035G7

The Intel Core i5-1035G7 is a power efficient quad-core SoC for laptops and Ultrabooks based on the Ice -Lake-U generation that was announced in Mai 2019 (Computex). It integrates four Sunnycove processor cores (8 threads thanks to HyperThreading) clocked at 1.2 (base) - 3.7 (single core Turbo) GHz. 2 cores can reach 3.6 GHz and all four 3.3 GHz using Turbo Boost. According to Intel the Sunnycove cores achieve 18% more IPCs (Instructions per Clock)  and therefore the CPU performance should be similar to the higher clocked Whiskey-Lake predecessors (e.g. Core i5-8365U with up to 4.1 GHz). The Core i5-1035G7 is the second fastest Ice Lake-U chip at the time of announcement in 2019.

The biggest improvement for Ice-Lake is the integrated Gen 11 graphics card called Iris Plus Graphics. The Core i7-1065G7 integrates the biggest G7 variant with 64 CUs clocked at 300 - 1100 MHz. The Iris Plus G7 should be twice as fast as the predecessors and best the AMD Vega 10 GPU in current Ryzen APUs.

Other improvements for Ice Lake are the AI hardware acceleration and the partial integration of Thunderbolt and Wifi 6 in the chip. The integrated DDR4 memory controller supports modules with up to 3200 MHz (and LPDDDR4 3733).

Power consumption

This Core i5 has a default TDP (also known as the long-term power limit) of 15 W, a value that laptop manufacturers are allowed to change to anything between 12 W and 25 W if required with clock speeds and performance changing accordingly. Those values are a little too high to allow for passively cooled designs.

The processor is built with Intel's first-gen 10 nm process for decent, as of late 2022, energy efficiency.