Intel Core i5-1034G1 vs AMD Ryzen 7 4980U vs Intel Core i5-1035G4

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 7 4980U

The AMD Ryzen 7 4980U is a Renoir family processor designed for certain Microsoft Surface systems. 4980U has eight Zen 2 cores clocked at 2.0 GHz (base clock speed) to 4.4 GHz (Boost) with thread-doubling SMT tech enabled for a total of 16 threads. The chip is manufactured on the modern 7 nm TSMC process and partly thanks to that AMD promises a 2x improvement in performance-per-Watt over Ryzen 3000 series mobile CPUs.

Architecture

The Zen 2 microarchitecture has brought a sizeable per-thread performance boost compared to the outgoing Zen+ parts. Renoir product family is also the first to introduce 8-core ULV processors to laptop market, keeping power consumption within reasonable limits. This AMD processor family is very impressive from most perspectives. One of the disatvantages to keep in mind is the lack of PCI-Express 4 support, meaning these blazing-fast NVMe SSDs will be limited to 3.9 GB/s tops.

Ryzen 7 4980U is designed to work with quad-channel LPDDR4 memory at up to 4,267 MHz. 8 MB of Level 3 are present in this chip. The Ryzen 7 gets soldered straight to the motherboard (FP6 socket) and is thus not user-replaceable. Please go to our Renoir hub page for more information on the product family.

Performance

The 4980U is the fastest U-class Ryzen 4000 series chip. As such, its clock speeds are 200 MHz higher (both the base and Boost) than what the Ryzen 7 4800U has. We fully expect the new Zen 3-based Ryzen 7 5800U to be even faster; in the meantime, the 4980U trades blows with the i7-10870H as far as multi-thread benchmark scores are concerned.

Graphics

In addition to its eight CPU cores, the Ryzen 7 also features the Radeon RX Vega 8 graphics adapter with 8 CUs (= 512 shaders) at up to 1,950 MHz. This iGPU is compatible with FreeSync and DirectX 12 and is able to HW-decode AVC, HEVC, VP9-encoded videos (no AV1 support here). Vega 8 is capable of outputting UHD 2160p60 video signal to several monitors and, similar to Intel's Iris Xe (80 EUs), is good enough for a bit of light gaming on the go, provided one is content with sub-1080p resolutions and low/medium quailty presets.

Power consumption

The APU has a default TDP, also known as the long-term power limit, of 15 W; much like it is with other U-class Ryzen 4000 chips, AMD is fine with laptop makers (Microsoft, in this case) changing that value to anything between 10 W and 25 W.

The 7 nm TSMC process this Ryzen 7 is built with makes for above average, as of mid 2022, energy efficiency.

Intel Core i5-1035G4

The Intel Core i5-1035G4 is a low-power, Ice Lake family processor (SoC) featuring 4 cores, 8 threads, 6 MB of L3 cache and the Iris Plus G4 (48 EUs) iGPU. It saw the light of day in H2 2019. The chip is designed for use in highly portable laptops; its CPU cores run at 1.1 GHz to 3.7 GHz, with only 3.3 GHz achievable if all the cores are loaded.

Unlike the costlier Core i5-1035G7, the 1035G4 has the 48 EU Intel iGPU at its disposal as opposed to the more powerful Iris Plus G7 (64 EUs); CPU cores have a slightly lower base clock speed in the case of the 1035G4, too.

Architecture & Features

Ice Lake family chips are powered by Sunny Cove CPU cores.The latter aim to do what Palm Cove cores (that we never really got a chance to get a taste of) were expected to do, delivering a double-digit IPC uplift over the venerable Skylake architecture thanks to a range of small improvements across the board including scheduler improvements, larger caches and buffers, and support for new instruction sets.

Thunderbolt 3 support is built right into the Core i5 (meaning the latter has several PCIe 3 lanes exclusive to Thunderbolt devices, reducing the number of additional components required for Thunderbolt to work) and so is CNVi Wi-Fi 6 support (making it easier for Intel to sell its proprietary WLAN cards to laptop makers). The Core i5-1035G4 also has the DL Boost and GNA features for applications centered around machine learning.

The 4 GT/s bus is indicative of a consumer-grade chip, since CPUs for gaming laptops and portable workstations usually employ the faster 8 GT/s bus. RAM support is nothing to sneeze at, at up to DDR4-3200 or LPDDR4-3733. NVMe SSDs are supported, with data transfer rates limited to 3.9 GB/s (this is what four PCIe 3 lanes are good for). SATA drives and even eMMC chips are also natively supported here.

This is not a user-replaceable CPU, as it gets permanently soldered to the motherboard (BGA1526 socket interface).

OS support is limited to 64-bit Windows 10 and Windows 11, as well as many Linux distros.

Performance

The average 1035G4 in our database is very close to the Ryzen 5 2500U and the Core i5-10310U, as far as multi-thread performance is concerned. This makes it a mid-range chip, as of late 2021. It can even be used for a bit of gaming, if connected to an external GPU via Thunderbolt.

The Acer Spin 3 SP314-54N-56S5 is one of the fastest laptops with this chip that we have tested. Thanks to the PL1 of 16.5 W, the Acer can be roughly 30% faster than the slowest system with the 1035G4 we know of, depending on the circumstances.

Graphics

The Iris Plus G4 (48 EUs) runs at up to 1.05 GHz. This is a rather decent iGPU that can be as fast as Nvidia's GeForce MX110 or even MX130, depending on the circumstances. It will handle many games at 1080p or 720p provided one is content with low or medium quality settings, respectively.

This DX12-compatible graphics adapter will drive up to 3 monitors with resolutions as high as 5120 x 3200. There is no support for ray tracing here and no hardware support for the latest AV1 codec; the usual HEVC, AVC and VP9 codecs are supported, thankfully.

Power consumption

This 10th generation Intel Core i5 processor has a default TDP of 15 W (also known as the long-term power limit). Laptop makers are allowed to change that value to anything between 12 W and 25 W, with clock speeds and performance changing accordingly. This means the CPU is too power-hungry to be used as the base of a passively cooled laptop, tablet, mini-PC.

The Core i5-1035G4 is manufactured on Intel's 2nd generation 10 nm process (not "10 nm SuperFin" or "Intel 7") for average energy efficiency, as of early 2023.