Intel Core i7-10710U vs Intel Core i9-8950HK

Intel Core i7-10710U

The Intel Core i7-10710U is a power efficient hexa-core SoC for notebooks based on the Comet Lake (CML-U) generation and was announced in August 2019. Compared to the similar Whiskey Lake processors (e.g. Core i5-8665U), the only difference is support for higher memory speeds (DDR4-2666 vs 2400) and two additional cores in the top model. The processor cores are clocked between 1.1 and 4.7 GHz (all 6 cores 3.9 GHz max). Thanks to HyperThreading 12 threads can be used. More information on Comet Lake and all the models and articles on it can be found here.

Thanks to the two additional cores and the high clock rates, the processor performance of the i7-10710U is very good for its class. It should outperform the top Whiskey Lake and also Ice Lake processors if the cooling and TDP settings are not limiting.

The integrated graphics card however is still the same as in the previous generations. It should be still called Intel HD Graphics 620 and clock from 300 - 1150 MHz in the i7. Furthermore, the SoC integrates a VP9 and H.265 de- and encoder and an integrated dual channel DDR4-2666 / LPDDR4x 2933 / LPDDR3-2133 memory controller.

The chip is still produced on the 14nm++ process as Whiskey Lake. The TDP (PL1) is specified at 15 Watts but can be varied from 12.5 to 25 Watt from the manufacturer (cTDP up/down) resulting in different performance (especially Turbo durations). To provide the full performance, Intel proposes a short power peak of 90 W (PL4) for the i7 and therefore 8 W more than the quad-core CML-U CPUs and a whopping 19 W more than Whiskey Lake. Therefore, some slim laptops with 15W CML-U CPUs wont offer the i7 as they cant provide enough power and cooling to get full performance out of the 6 cores.

Intel Core i9-8950HK

The Intel Core i9-8950HK is a high-end processor for laptops with six cores based on the Coffee Lake architecture and was announced early 2018. The processor clocks at between 2.9- 4.8 GHz (4.3 GHz with 6 cores) and can execute up to twelve threads simultaneously thanks to Hyper-Threading. The 4.8 GHz can only be reached using the "Thermal Velocity Boost" which allows one core to boost to 4.8 GHz (+200 MHz) as long as the CPU temperature is below 50°C. Multiple cores can be boosted +100 MHz below 50°C.

According to Intel, the CPU is manufactured in an improved 14nm (14nm++) process. The i9-8950HK is the fastest model of the Coffee-Lake-H series at the time of announcement and offers an unlocked multiplier for overclocking of the CPU.

The Coffee Lake architecture is similar to Kaby Lake and differs only in the amount of cores (now six cores for the high end versions) and the improved 14nm process (14nm++ according to Intel).

Performance

Due to the two additional cores, performance has increased by almost 50% compared to a similar clocked Kaby Lake processor.

Graphics

The integrated Intel UHD Graphics 630 iGPU is supposed to offer a slightly higher performance as its clock rate has been increased by 50 MHz. The architecture is identical to that of the Intel HD Graphics 630. We do expect a performance improvement, but as a low-end solution it will probably only display current games smoothly at reduced details - if at all.

Power Consumption

Intel specifies the TDP with 45 watts and therefore the i9 is only suited for big laptops with good cooling solutions.