Intel amd cpu: AMD vs Intel: Which CPUs Are Better in 2022?

AMD vs. Intel: which wins in 2022?

At the heart of your pursuit for a new or upgraded PC lies an important decision: Should you use an AMD or Intel CPU? Like macOS versus Windows, the AMD versus Intel rivalry is one of the greatest debates for PC enthusiasts, and right now, we are in the middle of a neck-and-neck race that’s bound to get even more heated.

Contents

• AMD versus Intel: a brief history
• Desktop processors: a price comparison
• Which company makes the fastest processors?
• High-end desktop processors
• Laptop processors
• Should you buy AMD or Intel?

Now that AMD has launched its Ryzen 7000 CPUs and Intel its 13th-generation Raptor Lake processors, it’s time to revisit the dynamic between AMD and Intel in 2022. Forget the head-to-heads of yesteryear. This is the AMD versus Intel battle as it exists today.

AMD versus Intel: a brief history

Jacob Roach / Digital Trends

AMD and Intel are two of the most iconic names in PC building, and for good reason. For decades, they’ve been duking it out to offer the fastest, most capable, and most feature-rich processors for gamers, casual web browsers, and professionals alike. They’ve gone back and forth a few times over the years, with AMD launching groundbreaking designs and Intel responding with revolutionary chips of its own, but where Intel maintained a strong grasp on flagship performance between 2005 and 2015, AMD really turned things around with the launch of its Ryzen processors.

Debuting in 2017, these chips brought the fight to Intel like AMD hadn’t done in over a decade, and ever since then, the competition has only increased. Today, Intel and AMD are neck and neck with their latest designs, offering the greatest CPU performance we’ve ever seen in mainstream components. With more cores, higher clocks, and new features, the best processors from Intel and AMD are something to get very excited about.

Desktop processors: a price comparison

Jacob Roach / Digital Trends

AMD and Intel both have wide ranges of processors that are all well worth considering when it comes to your next upgrade. The latest models are AMD’s Ryzen 7000 and Intel’s 13th-generation Raptor Lake. These processors offer up to 24 cores, clock speeds that are approaching 6GHz, and more cache than even the fastest CPUs of previous generations could dream of.

Here are all the latest mainstream CPUs from AMD and Intel:

AMD

	Ryzen 9 7950X	Ryzen 9 7900X	Ryzen 7 7700X	Ryzen 5 7600X
Cores/threads	16/32	12/24	8/16	6/12
Cache (L2+L3)	80MB	76MB	40MB	38MB
Base clock	4.5GHz	4.7GHz	4.5GHz	4.7GHz
Boost clock	5.7GHz	5.6GHz	5.4GHz	5.3GHz
TDP	170W	170W	105W	105W
Price	$699	$549	$399	$299

Intel

	Core i9-13900K	Core i7-13700K	Core i5-13600K
Cores/threads	24 (8+16)/32	16(8+8)/24	14(6+8)/20
Cache (L2+L3)	68MB	54MB	44MB
Base clock	3GHz (P-core), 2. 2GHz (E-core)	3.4GHz (P-core), 2.5GHz (E-core)	3.5GHz (P-core), 2.6GHZ (E-core)
Boost clock	Up to 5.8GHz	Up to 5.4GHz	Up to 5.1GHz
TDP	125W/253W	125W/253W	125W/181W
Price	$590	$410	$320

AMD and Intel also offer credible options with their last-generation Ryzen 5000 and 12th-gen Alder Lake, although those aren’t as fast and don’t support all of the latest features. Both also have very cheap, budget options that can cost as little as $50, but they’re only recommendable for those building the most lightweight of PCs.

Which company makes the fastest processors?

Jacob Roach / Digital Trends

Intel and AMD have excellent processors for gaming and productivity tasks like video editing and transcoding. While you will find the best bang for your buck around the midrange of both camps (Intel’s Core i5-13600K and AMD’s Ryzen 7700X are particular standouts), the flagship CPUs from both AMD and Intel offer the best performance in gaming and more demanding multithreaded workloads.

The Intel Core i9-13900K has 24 cores (8 + 16) and supports up to 32 threads, while the best AMD CPU uses a more traditional 16-core and 32-thread layout. Both chips are neck and neck in demanding games and trade blows in workplace applications. Where more full cores can be leveraged, the 13900K steals the top spot, while applications that rely on more powerful individual cores lean toward AMD.

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You don’t need to buy the best to get a great CPU for gaming or work, though. At around the $300 mark, Intel’s Core i5-13600K is arguably the best bang-for-the-buck CPU of its generation, offering amazing gaming and productivity performance for a much lower price. AMD can compete on performance, but its 7600X falls behind, and the 7700X is more expensive, so Intel steals the value in the midrange for now.

There are also last-generation CPUs worth considering, too. AMD’s Ryzen 5000 series are still very capable processors, with its 5800X3D being amazingly competitive with even the latest and greatest in games. It is a dead end for upgrades, though, as Ryzen 7000 needs a whole new motherboard and memory configuration. The Intel 12th-generation CPUs are great picks, too, with the 12600K being another great standout in the midrange and a clear upgrade path to the 13th generation when you want it.

Both companies also offer extensive ranges of budget CPUs, though you’ll be stuck with the previous generation for now. On Intel’s side, there’s the excellent quad-core Core i3-12100F for around $100, while AMD’s six-core Ryzen 5 5500 is about $120 and offers comparable performance in games.

If you’re planning on building a cheap system with no discrete graphics, Intel is probably your best option. Although AMD’s new Ryzen 7000 CPUs do have onboard graphics and AMD’s previous-generation APUs are relatively capable, they aren’t as affordable. You’d spend $150 on a Ryzen 5 5600G or about $120 on an Intel Core i3-12100.

High-end desktop processors

If you want to use your PC for heavy video editing at high resolutions or perform intensive video transcoding or CAD work, then you need heaps of processing power across plenty of cores. The best mainstream CPUs are great options for that, but if you need even more than the 24 cores of the 13900K, then you might want to consider a high-end desktop (HEDT) CPU.

Although Intel does have HEDT CPUs, like the 18-core Core i9-10980XE, it’s severely outdated and easily beaten by the latest high-end mainstream CPUs. Instead, if you need extra cores and CPU power, AMD’s Threadripper Pro range of Ryzen 5000 CPUs is your best bet.

AMD’s Threadripper CPUs offer 24, 32, and even 64 cores with support for double that number of simultaneous threads, all while maintaining clock speeds around the 4.5GHz mark. If your software can make use of all those extra cores, AMD’s Threadripper CPUs offer unparalleled performance outside of obscenely expensive server CPUs, easily outstripping the Intel competition. They also support a greater number of PCIExpress lanes — 128 versus just 44 on the Intel alternatives — making them more suited to larger storage arrays.

You’ll pay thousands for the 64-core 5995WX, but if you can accelerate your work and therefore earn more money by using one of these CPUs, it could be well worth it.

Laptop processors

The laptop market is a different story. Most notebooks you’ll find are based on an Intel processor of various generations and integrated graphics, but AMD CPUs are growing more common, and the latest Ryzen 6000 and upcoming Ryzen 7000 mobile CPUs offer impressive performance and efficiency.

Intel’s latest laptop CPUs are, for now, based on its Alder Lake generation, and you should be able to find laptops equipped with 12th-generation CPUs in pretty much every segment. Alder Lake comes in four flavors: the low-power U models, the middle-power P models, and the high-power H and HX models. Generally speaking, the more power, the faster the CPU, but there are some H and HX CPUs with fewer cores than P CPUs, so performance will depend on more than just power.

Ryzen mobile CPUs come in different flavors, just like Intel’s:

• C — low power
• U — efficient performance
• HS — efficient high performance
• H/HX — highest performance

Typically, you’ll find U- and P-type CPUs in lighter, thinner laptops with a focus on good battery life, decent integrated graphics, and overall satisfactory performance. H and HX CPUs are primarily for gaming laptops, and they’ll usually be paired with a powerful AMD or Nvidia GPU.

Although the Ryzen 6000 generation isn’t quite as high-performance as Intel’s 12th generation, there are some awesome Ryzen 6000 laptops, like the gorgeous Zenbook OLED we reviewed earlier this year.

Both AMD and Intel offer credible performance for work and play, and there are many more considerations to make when buying a laptop than the CPU, so looking at individual model reviews is a must.

Should you buy AMD or Intel?

For everyday web browsing, watching Netflix, and answering emails, Intel and AMD CPUs will give you excellent performance right out of the box. There are certain tasks, though, where one company’s options perform better than the others.

If you’re looking to work with your processor performing intensive multithreaded tasks like video editing or transcoding, or heavy multitasking activities with tens of browser tabs open, Intel’s laptop CPUs are the fastest, but AMD’s close behind and often offers better battery life. On desktop, it’s a toss-up, with both AMD and Intel delivering incredible multithreaded performance. You’ll get more bang for your buck with Intel’s midrange options, but at the top end, either camp is great.

Jacob Roach / Digital Trends

If you’re looking to game on your desktop, both AMD and Intel will serve you well. At the high end, the Core i9-13900K is the best CPU overall, but the 7700X and 7900X are great alternatives. Likewise, the Intel Core i5-13600K is almost as good as all three and much cheaper, but don’t discount the last-generation AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D, as it’s competitive with all of them — even if it doesn’t give you a good upgrade path with its last-generation design.

If you’re still unsure which chip is best for you, check out our guide on buying a CPU for more help.

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AMD vs Intel: which chipmaker does processors better?

(Image credit: AMD; Intel)

AMD and Intel have been duking it out on the proverbial CPU maker stage for years, and it seems like as of 2022 the competition between them is only heating up with the introduction of brand new technologies and chips.

Despite Moore’s Law looming ominously over the tech giants, both Team Blue and Team Red have been releasing the best processors they’ve made in years in 2021 and 2022. What makes it even more fascinating is how they’ve taken completely separate approaches to this.

After Team Blue released the best Intel processors through its incredibly popular and powerful Core series processors, Team Red released the best AMD processors in the form of its Ryzen series which was able to go toe-to-toe with the former.

In response, Intel rebounded with the Alder Lake series of chips, which are built on the big.LITTLE chip architecture pioneered by ARM and adopted by Apple for its M1 series SoCs. This represented a true change in Intel’s approach to its production and design strategy, which completely overwhelmed AMD.

AMD began to look for more unconventional new technologies and chipset designs to fight back and has found that already with its 3D V-cache processor, which completely outclasses Intel in the gaming market and is a huge source of revenue for any tech company.

Closer to launch is the next-gen Intel Raptor Lake while the AMD Zen 4 processors, the Ryzen 9 7950X and the Ryzen 7 7700X, are set to release tomorrow. They’re sure to make the fight between Intel and AMD even more heated and exciting.

AMD vs Intel: price

(Image credit: Future)

In the past, if you were looking for a decent CPU with a budget-friendly price, your go-to choice was AMD. However, with their newest generation of Ryzen CPUs, AMD has been on par or even surpassed Intel components on price. 

We noted in our AMD Ryzen 9 5900X review how the price of the 5900X went up $50 (about £35, AU$70) over the Ryzen 9 3900X it replaced. The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, meanwhile, is even more expensive with an MSRP of $799 which is the same price as Intel’s new Alder Lake Core i9-12900K processor.

This is more or less the pattern now as you move down the stack to the Core i7 and Ryzen 7, and the Core i5 and Ryzen 5 processors. And while AMD Ryzen processors, which will be released tomorrow, are generally going to be cheaper than and equivalent to Intel chips, the price difference is narrow enough now that depending on where you get the processor, you could end up paying more for an AMD chip than an Intel one.

In the other direction, if you’re in the market for a really high-end CPU and have super deep pockets, the third generation of AMD Threadripper units is the best choice for professional 3D modeling artists, animators, filmmakers, and data scientists. 

The Threadripper 3990X retails for a whopping $3,900 (£3,030, AU$5,890), putting it well out of range of casual PC builders and average PC gamers. This CPU is built with 64 cores and 128 threads to give you plenty of power to render 3D models and rip through complex mathematical models to get the most out of your workday.  

AMD vs Intel: performance

(Image credit: Future)

So you’ve set yourself a budget for a new CPU, but you still have a ton of options when it comes to performance.

If you’re looking for pure, raw performance then the Intel Alder Lake chips are going to serve you very well. The most powerful processor overall in the consumer class is the Core i9-12900K, which outperforms anything comparable that AMD is putting out and it’s not even really close.

If we were to compare apples to apples, as we did in our Intel Core i9-12900K vs AMD Ryzen 9 5900X breakdown, then the Ryzen 9 5900X comes in at a lower cost than the Core i9-12900K (and that’s not even factoring in the new motherboard and cooling you likely need for it). 

The Ryzen 9 5900XT is a 12-core, 24-thread processor that maxes out at a boost frequency of 4.8GHz and a whopping 70MB of cache memory. And the two new chips that will be launching tomorrow, the Ryzen 9 7950X and the Ryzen 7 7700X, have 16/32 and 8/16 core and thread counts, respectively.

The Core i9-12900K is a 16-core processor, but only eight of those cores are dual-threaded performance cores. The other eight are efficiency cores that are single-threaded and less powerful, but take on all of the low-level background tasks. This frees up the performance cores to dedicate themselves to tackling heavy workloads.

(Image credit: Ryzen)

This means that the total number of threads available for workloads is the same, but the difference comes in how those threads are used, and whatever Intel is doing is definitely working.

In the Cinebench R23 benchmarks we ran for our Intel Core i9-12900K and Core 15-12600K review, the Core i9-12900K scored about 21% better than the Ryzen 9 5900X in the single-threaded run and about 23% better during the multi-threaded run.

In fairness, the AMD Zen 3 architecture in the Ryzen 9 5900X is a little bit behind the Alder Lake chips, generationally, so it’s not an entirely fair comparison. However, with the AMD Zen 4-powered 7000-series releasing tomorrow, we’ll finally see chips that can compete with both the Alder Lake and upcoming Raptor Lake.

Where AMD does deserve some recognition in the performance department is gaming. According to our Ryzen 9 7950X review, it’s in a masterclass of its own in terms of sheer performance and took the crown as the best processor for gaming. And the Ryzen 7 7700X is an excellent choice for those who want an improved gaming experience without revamping their whole PC.

How it was able to do this is very much tied to the direction AMD is going with its processors, and that direction is interesting because it is a very different one than Intel is taking.

AMD vs Intel: future speculation

(Image credit: Future)

Intel’s approach to its next gen processors looks a lot like Apple’s. With the M1 chip, Apple moved to a hybrid architecture that had long powered mobile phones and tablets and is only just now making it to mobile and destop PCs. This architecture, known as big.LITTLE, uses a mix of performance and efficiency cores and delegates tasks to specific cores based on their priority and processing demands. 

This introduces a lot of efficiency into the processor by better managing its resources (why use up an entire full-fat thread to poll a keyboard to see if a key was pressed? It’s a waste of energy, and this efficiency is how big.LITTLE chips are able to get such extraordinary battery life. And now, those performance cores are powerful enough to absolutely blow through major computing tasks like video editing and gaming in ways that wasn’t possible even a few years ago. 

How that technology develops will be interesting to see because it looks like AMD is explicitly not going in that direction with their processors. Instead, AMD and semiconductor fabricator TSMC are co-developing a 3D chip-stacking process that introduces more verticality to the traditional processor chiplets.

It was this technology that allowed AMD to introduce a whole new 3D V-Cache chiplet on top of the processor die that expanded the pool of available cache memory for the eight processor cores of the Ryzen 7 5800X to create the Ryzen 7 5800X3D, and the result seriously impressive.

These are two different technologies that could radically transform how computer processors are designed and produced in the future, adding a lot more depth and complexity to the AMD vs Intel debate we’ve been having for years now. How these two technologies diverge and interact in the next several years could chart the course for consumer computing for decades to come.

• AMD’s next-gen processors might have a major disadvantage against rival Intel

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John (He/Him) is the US Computing Editor here at TechRadar and he is also a programmer, gamer, activist, and Brooklyn College alum currently living in Brooklyn, NY.  

Named by the CTA as a CES 2020 Media Trailblazer for his science and technology reporting, John specializes in all areas of computer science, including industry news, hardware reviews, PC gaming, as well as general science writing and the social impact of the tech industry.

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Currently playing: The Last Stand: Aftermath, Cartel Tycoon

who will win in 2022

In the pursuit of a new or upgraded PC, the most important question to be solved is which processor to choose — AMD or Intel? As with macOS and Windows, the AMD-Intel rivalry is the most contentious among PC enthusiasts, and right now we’re in the middle of a race that’s sure to get even hotter.

Notebook processors

Today, with AMD launching its Ryzen 7000 processors and Intel launching its 13th Gen Raptor Lake processors, it’s time to rethink the dynamics of the rivalry between AMD and Intel. Forget about the confrontation of the past. This is an AMD versus Intel battle as it exists today.
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AMD vs. Intel: A Brief History

AMD and Intel are two of the most iconic PC makers, and with good reason. For decades, they have strived to offer the fastest, most powerful, and most feature-packed processors for gamers, casual users, and professionals alike. Over the years, they have changed their position relative to each other several times: AMD launched innovative developments, and Intel responded with its own revolutionary chips, but at a time when Intel maintained a strong position in flagship performance between 2005 and 2015, AMD significantly changed the situation. , by releasing their Ryzen processors.
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Debuting in 2017, these chips challenged Intel like AMD hasn’t done in over a decade, and the competition has only intensified ever since. Today, Intel and AMD go hand in hand with their latest designs, offering the highest CPU performance we’ve ever seen in a mainstream component. The best Intel and AMD processors with more cores, higher clock speeds and new features are a delight.

Desktop Processors: 9 Price Comparisons0005

When it comes to upgrading your PC, both AMD and Intel have a wide range of processors to consider. AMD’s latest models are Ryzen 7000 and Intel’s 13th Gen Raptor Lake. These processors have up to 24 cores, clock speeds approaching 6 GHz, and more cache memory that even the fastest processors of previous generations could only dream of.

Latest main processors from AMD and Intel:

AMD

Ryzen 9 7950X

Ryzen 9 7900X

Ryzen 7 7700X

Ryzen 5 7600X

Cores/Threads

16/32

12/24

8/16

6/12

Cache (L2+L3)

80 MB

76 MB

40 MB

38 MB

base frequency

4.5 GHz

4.7 GHz

4.5 GHz

4.7 GHz

Maximum frequency

5. 7 GHz

5.6 GHz

5.4 GHz

5.3 GHz

Thermal design power

170 W

170 W
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105 W

105 W

Price, $

699

549

399

299

Intel

Core i9-13900K

Core i7-13700K

Core i5-13600K

Cores/Threads

24 (8+16)/32

16(8+8)/24

14(6+8)/20

Cache (L2+L3)

68 MB

54 MB

44 MB

base frequency

3 GHz (P-core), 2.2 GHz (E-core)

3.4GHz (P-core), 2.5GHz (E-core)

3.5GHz (P-core), 2.6GHz (E-core)

Maximum frequency

Up to 5.8 Hz

Up to 5.4 GHz
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Up to 5.1 GHz

Thermal design power

125W/253W

125W/253W

125W/181W

Price, $

590

410

320

AMD and Intel also offer solid variants of the latest generation Ryzen 5000 and 12th generation Alder Lake, although they are not as fast and do not support all the latest features. Both also have very cheap budget options that can cost as little as $50, but are only recommended for those building the lightest PCs.
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Which company makes the fastest processors?

Both Intel and AMD have great processors for gaming and tasks like video editing and transcoding. While you’ll find better bang for your buck in the mid-range of both camps (the Intel Core i5-13600K and AMD Ryzen 7700X stand out in particular), both AMD’s and Intel’s flagship processors will offer better performance in games and more demanding multi-threaded workloads.
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The Intel Core i9-13900K has 24 cores (8+16) and supports up to 32 threads, while AMD’s top processor uses a more traditional 16 core, 32 thread layout. Both chips are equally good in demanding games and work applications. Where more full cores can be used, the 13900K takes the lead, while applications that rely on more powerful individual cores lean towards AMD.

However, you don’t have to go for the most expensive option to get a great processor for gaming and work. At around $300, the Intel Core i5-13600K is arguably the best value processor of its generation, offering amazing gaming performance and more at a very affordable price. AMD can compete on performance, but its 7600X is behind and the 7700X is more expensive, so Intel is winning for now.
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It is also worth considering the latest generation of processors. The AMD Ryzen 5000 series is still a very powerful processor, and its 5800X3D can compete with even the latest and greatest gaming processors. At the same time, it’s a dead end for upgrades as the Ryzen 7000 needs an entirely new motherboard and memory configuration. 12th gen Intel CPUs are also a great choice as the 12600K is another outstanding mid-range product and you can easily upgrade to 13th gen if you wish.
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Both companies also offer a wide range of budget processors. On the Intel side, there’s an excellent quad-core Core i3-12100F for around $100, while AMD’s six-core Ryzen 5 5500 costs around $120 and offers comparable gaming performance.

If you’re looking to build a low-cost system without discrete graphics, Intel is likely your best bet. While the new AMD Ryzen 7000 processors have integrated graphics and the previous generation AMD APUs are relatively efficient, they are not as affordable. You’ll spend $150 for a Ryzen 5 5600G, or about $120 for an Intel Core i3-12100.
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High performance desktop processors

Whether you want to use your computer for high-resolution video editing, or do time-consuming video transcoding or CAD work, you need a lot of processing power on a large number of cores. The best mainstream processors are a great option for this, but if you need more than the 24 cores of the 13900K, you might want to consider a high end desktop processor (HEDT).
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While Intel does have HEDT processors like the 18-core Core i9-10980XE, it’s heavily outdated and easily outperformed by the latest high-end mainstream processors. Instead, if you need extra cores and processor power, the AMD Threadripper Pro Ryzen 5000 processor line is your best bet.

AMD Threadripper processors offer 24, 32 and even 64 cores with support for twice the number of simultaneous threads while maintaining a clock speed of around 4.5 GHz. If your software can take advantage of all those extra cores, AMD Threadripper processors offer unrivaled performance beyond obscenely expensive server processors, easily outperforming Intel’s competition. They also support more PCIExpress lanes — 128 versus just 44 for Intel alternatives — making them more suitable for larger storage arrays.
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You’ll have to pay thousands of dollars for a 64-core 5995WX, but if you can speed up your work and therefore make more money using one of these processors, then it’s worth it.

Notebook processors

The laptop market is a different story. Most laptops you’ll find are based on various generations of Intel processors and integrated graphics, but AMD processors are becoming more commonplace, with the latest Ryzen 6000 mobile processors and upcoming Ryzen 7000 mobile processors offering impressive performance and efficiency.
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The latest Intel laptop processors are currently based on the Alder Lake generation, and you can find laptops equipped with 12th generation processors in almost every segment. Alder Lake is available in four variants: low power U models, medium power P models, and H and HX high power models. Generally speaking, the more power, the faster the CPU, but some H and HX CPUs have fewer cores than P CPUs, so performance will not only depend on power.
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Ryzen mobile processors, like Intel processors, come in many varieties:

• C — low power
• U — economical performance
• HS — high performance
• H/HX — High performance

You’ll typically find U- and P-type processors in lighter and thinner laptops, with a focus on good battery life, decent integrated graphics, and generally satisfactory performance. The H and HX CPUs are primarily designed for gaming laptops, and they are usually paired with a powerful AMD or Nvidia GPU.
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While the Ryzen 6000 generation isn’t as high performing as Intel’s 12th generation, there are some great Ryzen 6000 laptops out there, like the Zenbook OLED we reviewed earlier this year.

Both AMD and Intel offer solid performance for work and play, and there are many more factors to consider when buying a laptop than just the processor, so be sure to check out reviews for specific models.

What to buy AMD or Intel? nine0005

For everyday surfing, watching movies and answering emails, Intel and AMD processors will give you superior performance. However, there are certain challenges where one company’s options perform better than others.

Whether you’re looking for a processor for intensive multi-threaded tasks like video editing or transcoding, or heavy multitasking with dozens of browser tabs open, Intel laptop processors will be the fastest. AMD processors lag behind in this, but often offer better battery life. In the case of desktops, the odds are even, as both AMD and Intel provide incredible multi-threaded performance. You’ll get more bang for your buck with Intel’s mid-range options, but at the top end either camp is great.
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If you want to play on your desktop computer, both AMD and Intel will be equally useful to you. At the high end, the Core i9-13900K is the best processor overall, but the 7700X and 7900X are both great alternatives. Similarly, the Intel Core i5-13600K is almost as good as all three and a lot cheaper, but don’t discount the latest generation AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D as it easily competes with all of the above even though it’s not will give you the freedom to upgrade.
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Which is better than Intel and AMD in 2021: processor comparison

Whether you choose a processor for a simple office PC, a gaming PC or a powerful workstation, you have only two options — AMD or Intel. The confrontation between these giants gave rise to an almost religious worship of one of the camps and an irreconcilable war of fans and eternal disputes about which is better — AMD or Intel.

But this article is for those who do not consider themselves to be such fans, those who, when choosing a processor, are guided by common sense and the specific tasks facing it. After all, whatever you say, but each chipmaker has its own strengths and weaknesses. And today we will talk not so much about which of them is better, but about who is in the lead in certain use cases. In other words, we will analyze the strengths and weaknesses of Intel and AMD processors. nine0003

Gaming performance

Most independent tests comparing Intel and AMD processors favor the latter. Intel actually leads in all significant price ranges. This fully applies to the latest Intel Alder Lake models, which confidently outperform the AMD Ryzen 5000 processors on the Zen 3 microarchitecture. Moreover, the Intel Core i9-12900K actually became the fastest gaming processor in the world, but its cost is so high that it is much more The Core i7-12700K is considered an attractive choice for the role of the best gaming processor — it is only slightly slower than the Core i9-12900K, but costs much less. Well, the Core i5-12600K offers the best price / performance ratio that is currently on the market. AMD Ryzen 5 or Intel Core i5 — in the current generations of processors of the two giants, the confrontation between these processors ends in favor of the latter.

But even here everything is not so simple. Firstly, if your system does not have a discrete graphics card, and its purchase is not yet expected, then you have a direct road to the AMD camp. The company’s processors use the best integrated graphics that have no analogues in the market. nine0003

• Purchase

  Do you need a discrete graphics card or is integrated graphics sufficient?

Secondly, you can unlock the full potential of top-end Intel processors only by using them in a company with equally powerful components, which means that the cost of such an assembly will be simply huge. For example, the same Intel Core i9The -12900K can only really shine when paired with a fast monitor and when playing in Full HD resolution. If you prefer 2K or 4K gaming, then the bottleneck of the system will be the video card, which will have the lion’s share of the load.

The vast majority of gamers do not need such powerful processors, and the best choice for them will be the Core i5-12600K — just because of that excellent price-performance ratio. If you plan to use integrated graphics, then look towards the AMD Ryzen 7 5700G. nine0246

Workload performance

Until recently, AMD processors were considered the undisputed leaders in the AMD vs Intel battle in workload use cases. But with the release of Intel Alder Lake, the blue ones managed to reverse the sad situation for the company, and the result of the Intel vs AMD confrontation in 2021 is completely different. The new Intel processors offer an excellent combination of price and features in a wide range of workloads. And while AMD’s most powerful processors still lead the way in absolute performance in multi-threaded scenarios and content creation, these wins come at the expense of more cores and threads, more cache, and, as a result, a very high price. nine0003

Much of the success of Intel Alder Lake is due to the use of two types of cores in processors. Fast P-cores are indispensable when it comes to single-threaded workloads, while energy-efficient E-cores increase processor performance in multi-threaded operations and background work, which is especially effective for content creation.

If you need the most productive processor — choose AMD, if the best in terms of price and performance — Intel. nine0246

Power Efficiency and Thermal Dissipation

The power consumption of processors is highly dependent on the microarchitecture and process technology used in them, and thermal dissipation (TDP) is essentially determined by the power consumption of the processor. AMD’s 7nm Ryzen 5000s are the most power efficient desktop processors we’ve seen, leaving 11th Gen Intel Core models at bay. But independent tests have shown Intel’s huge success in this direction. The company has been able to keep the power consumption of the new processors to an acceptable level, and Alder Lake has noticeably better power efficiency compared to the Rocket Lake generation. nine0003

If you want the most energy efficient processors, choose AMD.

Overclocking

When it comes to overclocking, the undisputed leader is Intel, whose processors offer the best overclocking potential. In other words, Intel processors allow you to get more performance during overclocking compared to their speed at stock frequencies.

Another issue is that the company’s policy remains very strict. For maximum efficiency, you will have to spend money on expensive unlocked K-series processors, buy a very expensive Z-based motherboard and a powerful cooling system. nine0003

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AMD’s approach in this regard looks as liberal as possible. The company’s processors have a much lower overclocking potential, but they do not impose such stringent requirements on hardware. There is no need to buy any special, more expensive series of processors. Moreover, the proprietary Precision Boost Overdrive feature allows you to overclock your AMD processor in one click, making life as easy as possible for overclockers. nine0003

If you want a processor with the best overclocking potential, buy Intel, but be prepared to pay a lot of money for this privilege. For the simplest and easiest overclocking for the wallet, take AMD, but don’t expect any miracles.

Technologies

AMD was once the first to offer PCIe 4.0 support in its processors, which became especially important in light of the appearance of the first high-speed SSDs with this interface. The fact that even 10th generation Intel Core processors could not work with PCIe 4.0 SSDs largely limited their owners’ access to modern technologies. nine0003

But now the situation has changed exactly the opposite. It was Intel processors that were the first to receive support for PCIe 5.0 and the latest DDR5 RAM. And against this background, AMD already looks outdated with its PCIe 4.0 and DDR4. Of course, DDR5 greatly increases the cost of motherboards, and the advantages of this RAM are not yet so obvious, but in addition to DDR5, Alder Lake also supports DDR4, which is familiar to many.

At the same time, AMD still has a modern 7nm process technology, but Intel has been able to do a lot in this direction, and its latest 12th generation Core processors are far ahead of their predecessors in most parameters. First of all, due to the use of the updated architecture, which we talked about a little higher. nine0003

It’s not easy to choose a winner in this category. On the one hand, a more modern technical process still gives AMD some advantage over Intel, but it is not so great. On the other hand, PCIe 5.0 and DDR5 make Intel processors more attractive, but the price of this progress still bites a lot.

Price

Pricing is always the cornerstone when choosing a processor. And in recent years, we have become accustomed to the fact that it is simply impossible to oppose AMD here. The company’s processors were distinguished by an affordable price tag, almost all of them were overclockable and were offered with good coolers complete with free software and the Precision Boost Overdrive function. nine0003

Actually, all this remained unchanged. But Alder Lake-S has reduced AMD’s advantage to nothing, and now, in order to maintain its position, the company will have to reduce the cost of Ryzen 5000-series processors.