Ultra 7 258V vs i3-8121U

Place in the ranking	1696	613
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Market segment	Laptop	Laptop
Series	Intel Core i3	no data
Power efficiency	9.28	69.78
Architecture codename	Coffee Lake-U (2018−2019)	Lunar Lake (2024)
Release date	5 May 2018 (6 years ago)	24 September 2024 (less than a year ago)

Detailed specifications

Core i3-8121U and Core Ultra 7 258V basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores	2 (Dual-core)	8 (Octa-Core)
Threads	4	8
Base clock speed	2.2 GHz	2.2 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.2 GHz	4.8 GHz
Bus type	OPI	no data
Bus rate	4 GT/s	37 MHz
Multiplier	22	no data
L1 cache	64K (per core)	192 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256K (per core)	2.5 MB (per core)
L3 cache	4 MB (shared)	12 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	10 nm	3 nm
Die size	123 mm²	no data
Maximum core temperature	105 °C	100 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	72 °C	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	no data

Compatibility

Information on Core i3-8121U and Core Ultra 7 258V compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration	1 (Uniprocessor)	1
Socket	Intel BGA1440	Intel BGA 2833
Power consumption (TDP)	15 Watt	17 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i3-8121U and Core Ultra 7 258V. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512	no data
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
vPro	-	no data
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
QuickAssist	-	no data
Speed Shift	+	no data
My WiFi	+	no data
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	no data
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	no data
TSX	-	+
Idle States	+	no data
Thermal Monitoring	+	-
Flex Memory Access	+	no data
Smart Response	+	no data
Demand Based Switching	-	no data
HD Audio	+	no data
RST	+	no data

Security technologies

Core i3-8121U and Core Ultra 7 258V technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	-	+
EDB	+	no data
Secure Key	+	no data
MPX	+	-
SGX	-	no data
OS Guard	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i3-8121U and Core Ultra 7 258V are enumerated here.

VT-d	+	+
VT-x	+	+
VT-i	-	no data
EPT	+	no data

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i3-8121U and Core Ultra 7 258V. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4	DDR5
Maximum memory size	32 GB	no data
Max memory channels	2	no data
Maximum memory bandwidth	38.397 GB/s	no data

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card

Iris Pro Plus

Arc 140V

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i3-8121U and Core Ultra 7 258V.

PCIe version	3.0	5.0
PCI Express lanes	16	4

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.

Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

i3-8121U 2.76

Ultra 7 258V 12.60
+357%

Passmark

Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.

i3-8121U 4391

Ultra 7 258V 20018
+356%

3DMark06 CPU

3DMark06 is a discontinued DirectX 9 benchmark suite from Futuremark. Its CPU part contains two scenarios, one dedicated to artificial intelligence pathfinding, another to game physics using PhysX package.

i3-8121U 4314

Ultra 7 258V 10693
+148%

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.

i3-8121U 318

Ultra 7 258V 1593
+401%

Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.

i3-8121U 133

Ultra 7 258V 270
+103%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	2.76	12.60
Recency	5 May 2018	24 September 2024
Physical cores	2	8
Threads	4	8
Chip lithography	10 nm	3 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	15 Watt	17 Watt

i3-8121U has 13.3% lower power consumption.

Ultra 7 258V, on the other hand, has a 356.5% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 6 years, 300% more physical cores and 100% more threads, and a 233.3% more advanced lithography process.

The Core Ultra 7 258V is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i3-8121U in performance tests.

Should you still have questions on choice between Core i3-8121U and Core Ultra 7 258V, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.