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Intel Core i5-8257U vs Intel Core i5-8259U

Intel Core i5-8257U

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The Intel Core i5-8257U is a quad-core SoC for notebooks based on the Coffee Lake architecture that was announced in the new entry level MacBook Pro 13 in mid 2019. Compared to its predecessor, the CPU is now a quad-core with Hyperthreading support for the execution of up to 8 threads simultaneously. The base frequency is only 1.4 GHz, but the Turbo goes all the way up to 3.9 GHz. It is also equipped with an Intel Iris Plus Graphics 645 GPU with 128 MB eDRAM, a dual-channel memory controller (DDR4) as well as VP9 and H.265 video decoding as well as encoding. The chip is still manufactured in a 14nm process with FinFET transistors.

Compared to faster Core i7-8557U model with eDRAM and 15 Watts, the i5-8257U only features 6 MB smart cache and the slowest clock of the Iris Plus GPU.

Architecture

Intel basically uses the same micro architecture compared to Kaby Lake, 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

Thanks to the relative high Turbo Boost clock, the single thread performance should be very good, but still behind the faster i7 model. The short burst all core performance is clearly better compared to the old dual core predecessors thanks to the additional cores. In sustained workloads, the performance is usually limited by the TDP and cooling. In these workloads the difference to the Core i7 should be also smaller.

Graphics

The integrated Intel Iris Plus 645 Graphics is the GT3e model of the Coffee Lake GPU (Intel Gen. 9.5). It has 48 Execution Units running at 300-1050 MHz and the performance is comparable to a GeForce 930M or 940MX thanks to fast eDRAM cache. However, there aren't any significant improvements compared to the old Iris Plus 650, so modern games can often not be played smoothly or only at the lowest or medium settings, respectively.

Contrary to Skylake, Kaby lake now also supports H.265/HEVC Main 10 with a 10-bit color depth as well as Google's VP9 codec. The dual-core Kaby Lake processors 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 specifies the TDP with 15 Watts and therefore suited for thin and light laptops.

Intel Core i5-8259U

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The Intel Core i5-8259U is a quad-core SoC for notebooks based on the Coffee Lake architecture and was announced in April 2018. Compared to its predecessor Core i5-7267U, the CPU is now a quad-core with Hyperthreading support for the execution of up to 8 threads simultaneously. The base frequency is 2.3 GHz, but the Turbo goes all the way up to 3.8 GHz. It is also equipped with an Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655 GPU with 128 MB eDRAM, a dual-channel memory controller (DDR4) as well as VP9 and H.265 video decoding as well as encoding. The chip is still manufactured in a 14nm process with FinFET transistors.

Compared to faster Core i5 and i7 models with eDRAM and 28 Watts, the i5-8259U only features 6 MB smart cache and the slowest clock of the Iris Plus GPU.

Architecture

Intel basically uses the same micro architecture compared to Kaby Lake, 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

Considering the clocks of the Core i5-8259U, its performance should be between the 15W models Core i5-8350U and Core i7-8550U. The i5-8259U should still be faster than the i7-8550U in practice thanks to the increased TDP, especially during sustained workloads.

Graphics

The integrated Intel Iris Plus 655 Graphics is the GT3e model of the Kaby Lake GPU (Intel Gen. 9.5). It has 48 Execution Units running at 300-1050 MHz (slowest clock of the 655, the fastest is 1200 MHz in combination with the i7-8559U) and the performance is comparable to a GeForce 930M or 940MX thanks to fast eDRAM cache. However, there aren't any significant improvements compared to the old Iris Plus 650, so modern games can often not be played smoothly or only at the lowest or medium settings, respectively.

Contrary to Skylake, Kaby lake now also supports H.265/HEVC Main 10 with a 10-bit color depth as well as Google's VP9 codec. The dual-core Kaby Lake processors 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 specifies the TDP with 28 Watts, which can be reduced to 23 Watts (cTDP Down) depending on the usage scenario. The TDP is pretty high compared to the common 15-Watt TDP for quad-core processors, but allows a better utilization of CPU and GPU Turbo.

ModelIntel Core i5-8257UIntel Core i5-8259U
SeriesIntel Coffee LakeIntel Coffee Lake
CodenameCoffee Lake-UCoffee Lake-U
Series: Coffee Lake Coffee Lake-U
Intel Core i7-8559U compare2.7 - 4.5 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-8557U compare1.7 - 4.5 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i5-8269U compare2.6 - 4.2 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i5-8279U compare2.4 - 4.1 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i5-8259U2.3 - 3.8 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i5-8257U « 1.4 - 3.9 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i3-8109U compare3 - 3.6 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-8559U compare2.7 - 4.5 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-8557U compare1.7 - 4.5 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i5-8269U compare2.6 - 4.2 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i5-8279U compare2.4 - 4.1 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i5-8259U « 2.3 - 3.8 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i5-8257U1.4 - 3.9 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i3-8109U compare3 - 3.6 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Clock1400 - 3900 MHz2300 - 3800 MHz
L1 Cache256 KB256 KB
L2 Cache1 MB1 MB
L3 Cache6 MB6 MB
Cores / Threads4 / 84 / 8
TDP15 Watt28 Watt
Technology14 nm14 nm
max. Temp.100 °C100 °C
SocketFCBGA1528FCBGA1528
FeaturesDual-Channel DDR4 Memory Controller, HyperThreading, AVX, AVX2, Quick Sync, Virtualization, AES-NI, Intel SSE4.1, Intel SSE 4.2Dual-Channel DDR4 Memory Controller, HyperThreading, AVX, AVX2, Quick Sync, Virtualization, AES-NI, Intel SSE4.1, Intel SSE 4.2
iGPUIntel Iris Plus Graphics 645 (300 - 1050 MHz)Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655 (300 - 1050 MHz)
Architecturex86x86
Announced
Manufacturerark.intel.comark.intel.com

Benchmarks

Performance Rating - CB R15 + R20 + 7-Zip + X265 + Blender + 3DM11 CPU - i5-8257U
28.2 pt (39%)
Performance Rating - CB R15 + R20 + 7-Zip + X265 + Blender + 3DM11 CPU - i5-8259U
27.6 pt (38%)
Cinebench R23 - Cinebench R23 Multi Core
4033 Points (4%)
min: 3592     avg: 3792     median: 3728 (3%)     max: 4025 Points
Cinebench R23 - Cinebench R23 Single Core
1003 Points (43%)
min: 959     avg: 976     median: 976.5 (42%)     max: 991 Points
Cinebench R20 - Cinebench R20 CPU (Single Core)
min: 388     avg: 393     median: 393 (44%)     max: 398 Points
min: 369     avg: 378     median: 381 (42%)     max: 386 Points
Cinebench R20 - Cinebench R20 CPU (Multi Core)
min: 1494     avg: 1520     median: 1519.5 (4%)     max: 1545 Points
min: 1385     avg: 1473     median: 1471 (4%)     max: 1567 Points
Cinebench R15 - Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64 Bit
min: 629     avg: 634     median: 633.5 (4%)     max: 638 Points
min: 575     avg: 622     median: 615 (4%)     max: 687 Points
Cinebench R15 - Cinebench R15 CPU Single 64 Bit
min: 156     avg: 157.7     median: 157.7 (47%)     max: 159.3 Points
min: 132     avg: 147.1     median: 148.7 (45%)     max: 154 Points
Cinebench R11.5 - Cinebench R11.5 CPU Multi 64 Bit
7.1 Points (9%)
Cinebench R11.5 - Cinebench R11.5 CPU Single 64 Bit
1.7 Points (42%)
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Single (32bit)
5706 Points (34%)
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Multi (32bit)
21869 Points (16%)
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Multi (64bit)
27377 Points (19%)
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Single (64bit)
7397 Points (9%)
wPrime 2.10 - wPrime 2.0 1024m *
248.6 s (3%)
wPrime 2.10 - wPrime 2.0 32m *
7.5 s (2%)
WinRAR - WinRAR 4.0
5348 Points (8%)
7-Zip 18.03 - 7-Zip 18.03 Multli Thread 4 runs
19620 MIPS (11%)
min: 17799     avg: 20778     median: 19104.5 (11%)     max: 28824 MIPS
7-Zip 18.03 - 7-Zip 18.03 Single Thread 4 runs
4083 MIPS (49%)
min: 3753     avg: 3949     median: 3975.5 (48%)     max: 4022 MIPS
X264 HD Benchmark 4.0 - x264 Pass 2
min: 38.5     avg: 39.5     median: 39.5 (14%)     max: 40.5 fps
X264 HD Benchmark 4.0 - x264 Pass 1
min: 162.3     avg: 165.1     median: 165.1 (38%)     max: 167.95 fps
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 - HWBOT x265 4k Preset
5.3 fps (9%)
min: 4.72     avg: 5.2     median: 5.4 (9%)     max: 5.49 fps
TrueCrypt - TrueCrypt Serpent
0.5 GB/s (0%)
TrueCrypt - TrueCrypt Twofish
0.8 GB/s (13%)
TrueCrypt - TrueCrypt AES
4.1 GB/s (11%)
Blender - Blender 3.3 Classroom CPU *
1331 Seconds (17%)
Blender - Blender 2.79 BMW27 CPU *
714 Seconds (5%)
min: 688     avg: 730     median: 729.5 (5%)     max: 769 Seconds
R Benchmark 2.5 - R Benchmark 2.5 *
min: 0.738     avg: 0.8     median: 0.8 (17%)     max: 0.818 sec
3DMark 06 - CPU - 3DMark 06 - CPU
7916 Points (17%)
Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 1M - Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 1M *
11.1 s (2%)
Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 2M - Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 2M *
24.3 s (1%)
Super Pi Mod 1.5 XS 32M - Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 32M *
589 s (3%)
3DMark Vantage - 3DM Vant. Perf. CPU no Physx
25093 Points (22%)
3DMark 11 - 3DM11 Performance Physics
7866 Points (21%)
min: 7105     avg: 8348     median: 8528.5 (23%)     max: 9276 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Ice Storm Physics
min: 47878     avg: 49579     median: 49578.5 (40%)     max: 51279 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Ice Storm Extreme Physics
min: 47855     avg: 49509     median: 49509 (40%)     max: 51163 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited Physics
min: 17718     avg: 40451     median: 49722 (42%)     max: 53914 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Cloud Gate Physics
min: 5946     avg: 6904     median: 6670.5 (17%)     max: 7927 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Fire Strike Standard Physics
8936 Points (16%)
min: 8348     avg: 9726     median: 9743 (17%)     max: 11006 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Time Spy CPU
2740 Points (12%)
min: 2752     avg: 3096     median: 3132 (13%)     max: 3346 Points
Geekbench 5.5 - Geekbench 5.1 - 5.4 64 Bit Single-Core
948 Points (40%)
min: 948     avg: 961     median: 951 (40%)     max: 984 Points
Geekbench 5.5 - Geekbench 5.1 - 5.4 64 Bit Multi-Core
3858 Points (7%)
min: 3359     avg: 3602     median: 3607 (6%)     max: 3839 Points
Geekbench 5.0 - Geekbench 5.0 64 Bit Single-Core
989 Points (4%)
min: 944     avg: 957     median: 948 (4%)     max: 979 Points
Geekbench 5.0 - Geekbench 5.0 64 Bit Multi-Core
4181 Points (13%)
min: 3335     avg: 3571     median: 3567 (11%)     max: 3811 Points
Geekbench 4.4 - Geekbench 4.1 - 4.4 64 Bit Single-Core
4608 Points (46%)
min: 4200     avg: 4265     median: 4211 (42%)     max: 4383 Points
Geekbench 4.4 - Geekbench 4.1 - 4.4 64 Bit Multi-Core
16580 Points (18%)
min: 13421     avg: 14122     median: 13961 (16%)     max: 14984 Points
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Kraken 1.1 Total Score *
min: 901     avg: 914     median: 913.5 (1%)     max: 926 ms
min: 1010     avg: 1054     median: 1068 (1%)     max: 1095 ms
Octane V2 - Octane V2 Total Score
min: 38704     avg: 39388     median: 39387.5 (35%)     max: 40071 Points
WebXPRT 4 - WebXPRT 4 Score
140.3 Points (40%)
WebXPRT 3 - WebXPRT 3 Score
210 Points (44%)
min: 173.3     avg: 176.9     median: 176 (37%)     max: 182.4 Points
CrossMark - CrossMark Overall
954 Points (37%)
Power Consumption - Prime95 Power Consumption - external Monitor *
min: 36.1     avg: 42     median: 39.5 (7%)     max: 50.3 Watt
Power Consumption - Cinebench R15 Multi Power Consumption - external Monitor *
min: 37.6     avg: 44.2     median: 43.7 (8%)     max: 51.3 Watt
Power Consumption - Idle Power Consumption - external Monitor *
13.9 Watt (9%)
Power Consumption - Cinebench R15 Multi Power Efficiency - external Monitor
min: 12.4     avg: 13.9     median: 13.9 (10%)     max: 15.3 Points per Watt

Average Benchmarks Intel Core i5-8257U → 100% n=21

Average Benchmarks Intel Core i5-8259U → 97% n=21

- Range of benchmark values for this graphics card
- Average benchmark values for this graphics card
* Smaller numbers mean a higher performance
1 This benchmark is not used for the average calculation

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log 16. 08:02:18

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Redaktion, 2017-09- 8 (Update: 2023-07- 1)