Intel Core i9-9900T vs Intel Core i7-8700

Intel Core i9-9900T

The Intel Core i9-9900T is a high end power efficient desktop processor based on the Coffee Lake architecture. Compared to the similar named top model Core i9-9900K, the 9900T offers lower clock speeds (2.1 - 4.4 GHz versus 3.6 - 5 GHz) and a reduced TDP of 35 versus 95 Watt. It still offers all 8 cores and 16 threads and is intended for small chassis or laptops.

The performance is clearly behind the Core i9-9900K and more in the realm of the older 6-core Coffee Lake CPUs.

The integrated Intel UHD Graphics 630 graphics card is clocked at up to 1.2 GHz and offers no advantage compared to previous generations. As it is a very low end GPU, only some low demanding games like Hearthstone can be played with it (see GPU page for benchmarks).

Intel Core i7-8700

The Intel Core i7-8700 is a high-end desktop processor with six cores based on the Coffee Lake architecture and was announced in September 2017. The processor clocks at between 3.2 and 4.6 GHz and can execute up to twelve threads simultaneously thanks to Hyper-Threading. According to Intel, the CPU is manufactured in an improved 14nm (14nm++) process. Compared to the slightly higher clocked Core i7-8700K, the i7-8700 offers a lower TDP and no unlocked multiplier (no easy overclocking).

Performance

Due to the two additional cores, performance has increased by almost 50% compared to the previous quad-core Kaby Lake models. Single-core performance has not improved much. As a high-end model, the i7-8700 is suitable for the most demanding applications and games.

Graphics

The integrated Intel UHD Graphics 630 iGPU is supposed to offer higher performance as its clock rate has been increased by 50 MHz. The build 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 65 watts. Therefore, well-dimensioned cooling systems should easily manage to deal with the created heat. We expect increased efficiency due to the higher performance.