Buzz
In this article, Mytour will systematically explore the most crucial aspects of a
CPU
Cost: Intel or AMD?
This is almost the first thing we consider when choosing a new CPU. In previous years, AMD was the favored name not only in the CPU realm but also in GPUs. However, the manufacturer has recently increased product prices and cut accessories (such as cooling fans). Therefore, in 2023, it's challenging to assert that AMD has a price advantage over Intel.
When considering the performance-to-price ratio, AMD falls short of Intel in this area. The era of AMD being synonymous with low cost and high performance is long gone. Intel's Raptor Lake CPUs (13th generation, labeled as 13xxx) i5, i7, i9 offer extremely competitive pricing, significantly outperforming AMD and gaining mid to high-end market share. Meanwhile, the older Alder Lake i3 CPUs still dominate the low-end segment.
For users looking to upgrade from older CPUs or build a new system, the cost of the motherboard is also a crucial consideration. AMD has used the AM4 socket for five CPU generations, with only the Ryzen 7000 series transitioning to the new AM5 socket. In contrast, Intel has made frequent socket changes recently. The red team also allows users to overclock their CPUs freely without any additional costs (with the exception of the A series motherboards). Meanwhile, Intel continues to restrict users with its high-end K series CPUs, requiring expensive Z series motherboards.
Overall, the red team still excels across all product lines, but the blue team secures victories in various price ranges due to a balance of performance and cost. Particularly noteworthy is that, even though both sides support DDR5 and PCIe 5.0, Intel CPUs also support DDR4, allowing users to temporarily avoid the relatively expensive DDR5 in the current market.
Gaming Performance
A crucial aspect of PCs is gaming, and Mytour needs to address this when evaluating the strength of AMD and Intel. Generally, based on benchmark results from Tom's Hardware, most Intel Raptor Lake CPUs outperform AMD's Ryzen 7000 series CPUs in the same price range. However, in the high-end segment, Ryzen 9 7950X3D and Ryzen 9 7900X3D CPUs take the lead.
For budget-conscious gamers, the
Intel CPUsdominate across all price ranges. The Core i7 13700K offers gaming performance equivalent to the Core i9 13900K but at a much lower cost, suitable for those aiming for the highest achievable frame rates. In the mid-range, the Core i5 13600K and i5 13400 are formidable choices, while the popular Core i3 12100 stands out in the low-end segment.
Therefore, if you want the highest performance without cost concerns, AMD CPUs with 3D V-cache memory are the most suitable choice. However, when considering the performance-to-price ratio, Intel CPUs surpass the competition.
Work Performance
Beyond gaming, PC users also utilize their systems for tasks such as 3D modeling, video editing, etc. In this domain, once again, Intel's Raptor Lake CPUs show significant advancements over AMD products and surprisingly, at a very budget-friendly price. However, if you prioritize performance over cost, AMD CPUs still hold the top position.
The reason behind Intel CPUs' current strength lies in the architecture that combines two types of cores, power (P-core) and efficiency (E-core). When handling heavy tasks, P-cores activate to provide users with the necessary high performance. For background applications and multi-threading, E-cores join in to reduce the load on P-cores. This results in impressive overall performance in multi-threaded applications, often found in content production software and tasks.
For professionals seeking high performance in content production or aiming to boost their workflow speed, CPU Intel gains an edge with their hybrid x86 architecture combining two CPU core types. In the thousand-dollar range, AMD takes the lead.
Overclocking Capability
Above, Mytour mentioned
AMD CPUsallow 'flexible' overclocking, while Intel locks this feature behind expensive CPUs and motherboards. We must also allocate funds for better cooling solutions. However, this section will solely consider overclocked performance, temporarily setting aside the cost factor. Once again, Intel demonstrates that users will receive performance commensurate with the money spent, as verified by Tom's Hardware tests:
According to the chart, Intel CPUs allow for significantly higher overclocking compared to AMD, delivering comparable high performance. Meanwhile, overclocking all cores of AMD CPUs can sometimes lead to performance loss. This difference is mainly due to AMD chips being designed to allow some cores to clock significantly higher than the others, and they often operate near the maximum overclock. Hence, this is not necessarily a weakness of AMD.
Additionally, AMD CPUs feature Precision Boost Overdrive, allowing users to overclock their CPUs with just a few mouse clicks based on the CPU type, motherboard, and cooling capability. This provides AMD users with nearly maximum performance without spending much time considering and weighing overclocking options. Although AMD CPUs may not reach the clock speeds seen on Intel CPUs, this is still a noteworthy advantage for regular users.
In general, for tech-savvy users unconcerned about additional costs from the motherboard and cooling solutions, seeking maximum performance when overclocking, Intel CPUs are a preferable choice. However, AMD remains a more cost-effective option if you are not too tech-savvy, don't want to invest heavily, and simply aim to push your PC's performance to the highest achievable level (still lower than Intel) without much hassle.
Conclusion
So, in 2023, Intel continues to maintain its leading position, recaptured from AMD, thanks to advancements in the Raptor Lake CPU architecture. While they may lag behind in the high-end segment, the advantages in performance-to-cost ratio and real-world productivity make Intel CPUs the most suitable choice currently.
