Intel Core i5-7300U vs Intel Core i5-4430 vs Intel Core i5-4460

Intel Core i5-7300U

The Intel Core i5-7300U is a fast dual-core processor for notebooks based on the Kaby Lake architecture and was announced in January 2017. It integrates 2 CPU cores with Hyper-Threading support clocked at 2.6 - 3.5 GHz (2 core Turbo also 3.5 GHz). Besides two cores, the processor is also equipped with the HD Graphics 620 GPU as well as a dual-channel memory controller (DDR3L-1600/DDR4-2400). It is manufactured in a 14nm process with FinFET transistors.

Architecture

Intel basically uses the same micro architecture compared to Skylake, so the per-MHz performance does not differ. The manufacturer only reworked the Speed Shift technology for faster dynamic adjustments of voltages and clocks, and the improved 14nm process allows much higher frequencies combined with better efficiency than before.

Performance

With 2.5 to 3.5 GHz, the Core i5-7300U clocks significantly higher than the old Core i5-7200U (2.5 - 3.1) and Core i5-6200U (2.3 - 2.8 GHz). Thanks to the fast Turbo frequency, the performance should be slightly below to the Core i7-7500U (2.7 - 3.5 GHz, but 4 MB L3 cache). Therfore, the performance is sufficient for demanding tasks.

Graphics

The integrated Intel HD Graphics 620 has 24 Execution Units (similar to previous HD Graphics 520) running at 300 - 1100 MHz. The performance depends a lot on the memory configuration; it should be comparable to a dedicated Nvidia GeForce 920M in combination with fast DDR4-2133 dual-channel memory.

Contrary to Skylake, Kaby Lake now supports hardware decoding for H.265/HEVC Main 10 with a 10-bit color depth as well as Google's VP9 codec. The dual-core Kaby Lake processors, which were announced in January, should also support HDCP 2.2.

Power Consumption

The chip is manufactured in an improved 14nm process with FinFET transistors, which improves the efficiency even further. Intel still specifies the TDP with 15 Watts, but it can also be reduced to 7.5 Watts by the notebook manufacturers (cTDP down). This will obviously affect the performance, because the Turbo Boost cannot be maintained for longer periods.

Intel Core i5-4430

The Intel Core i5-4430 is a quad-core processor for desktops of the Haswell generation. It integrates four cores clocked at 3 - 3.2 GHz but without HyperThreading / SMT (4 threads).

Intel Core i5-4460

The Intel Core i5-4460 is a mid range desktop quad-core processor based on the Haswell architecture. It was introduced in Q2 2014 and is manufactured in 22 nm. The processor does not feature Hyperthreading, and therefore can use only 4 threads with the 4 cores.

The performance is on average somewhere between an older Core i5-4430 (similar but lower clocked) and a new Skylake Core i5-6600T. Compared to mobile processors, the performance is similar to a Core i5-6300HQ. Therefore, the performance should be sufficient for all daily tasks and games.

The CPU also integrates a Intel HD Graphics 4600 called graphics card clocked at 350 to 1100 MHz.