Intel Core i5-11400H vs Intel Core i5-12450H

Intel Core i5-11400H

The Intel Core i5-11400H is a high-end hexa-core SoC for gaming laptops and mobile workstations. It is based on the Tiger Lake H45 generation and was announced in mid 2021. It integrates six Willow Cove processor cores (12 threads thanks to HyperThreading). The base clock speed depends on the TDP setting and at 45 Watt is at 2.7 GHz. The single core boost speed can reach up to 4.5 GHz, all cores can reach up to 4.1 GHz. The CPU geatures 12 MB L3 cache and supports DDR4-3200 memory.

Furthermore, Tiger Lake SoCs add PCIe 4 support (20 lanes in the H45 series), AI hardware acceleration, and the partial integration of Thunderbolt 4/USB 4 and Wi-Fi 6E in the chip.

The SoC features an improved Gen 12 graphics adapter called UHD Graphics with 16 EUs.

All articles on Tiger Lake can be found on our Tiger Lake architecture hub.

Performance

The average 11400H in our database matches the Ryzen 5 5600U and the Core i7-10750H in multi-thread performance, rendering the Core i5 a decent mid-range option as of mid 2022. It isn't as fast as the mighty Ryzen 9 5900HS, yet it will let you run most games in High or even Ultra settings at 1080p if mated to a fast graphics card.

Thanks to its decent cooling solution and a long-term CPU power limit of 45 W, the Gigabyte G5 GD (2021) is among the fastest laptops built around the 11400H that we know of. It can be around 20% faster in CPU-bound workloads than the slowest system featuring the same chip in our database, as of August 2023.

Power consumption

This Core i5 series chip has a default TDP of 35 W to 45 W, the expectation being that laptop makers will go for a higher value in exchange for higher performance. Either way, an active cooling solution is a must for a CPU like this.

The i5-11400H is manufactured on Intel's 3rd generation 10 nm process marketed as SuperFin for below average, as of early 2023, energy efficiency.

Intel Core i5-12450H

The Intel Core i5-12450H is a high-end mobile CPU for laptops based on the Alder Lake architecture. It was announced in early 2022 and offers 4 of the 6 performance cores (P-cores, Golden Cove architecture) and 4 of the 8 efficient cores (E-cores, Gracemont architecture) leading to 8 cores in total (octa core CPU). The P-cores support Hyper-Threading leading to 12 supported threads when combined with the E-cores. The clock rate ranges from 2 to 4.4 GHz on the performance cluster and 1.5 to 3.3 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 12500H, the 12450H offers less E-cores, lower clock rates, a slower iGPU and no vPro support.

Performance

The average 12450H in our extensive database is a bit of a disappointment, its multi-thread benchmark scores only just matching those of the Ryzen 7 5700U and the Core i7-10750H, both fairly old chips as of Q2 2023.

Your mileage may vary depending on how high the CPU power limits are and how competent the cooling solution of your system is.

Features

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 adapter is based on the Xe-architecture and offers 48 of the 96 EUs (Execution Units) operating at up to 1.2 GHz.

The CPU is rated at 45 W base power (95 W PL2) but most laptops will use a PL1 of around 60 Watt. The SoC is manufactured in a 10nm process at Intel, which is known as Intel 7.