i5-1230U vs i5-12600K

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Aggregate performance score

Core i5-12600K
2021
10 cores / 16 threads, 125 Watt
17.43
+152%
Core i5-1230U
2022
10 cores / 12 threads, 9 Watt
6.91

Core i5-12600K outperforms Core i5-1230U by a whopping 152% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking3641020
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation44.03no data
Market segmentDesktop processorLaptop
SeriesIntel Core i5Intel Alder Lake-M
Power efficiency13.2072.71
Architecture codenameAlder Lake, Golden Cove, Gracemont (2021)Alder Lake-U (2022)
Release date4 November 2021 (3 years ago)23 February 2022 (2 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$289no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

no data

Detailed specifications

Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U 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 cores10 (Deca-Core)10 (Deca-Core)
Threads1612
Base clock speed3.7 GHz1 GHz
Boost clock speed4.9 GHz4.4 GHz
Bus typeDMI 4.0no data
Bus rate8 × 16 GT/sno data
Multiplier37no data
L1 cache80K (per core)80K (per core)
L2 cache1.25 MB (per core)1.25 MB (per core)
L3 cache20 MB (shared)12 MB (shared)
Chip lithographyIntel 7 nmIntel 7 nm
Die size215.25 mm2no data
Maximum core temperature100 °C100 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)72 °Cno data
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility++
Unlocked multiplier+-

Compatibility

Information on Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U 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 configuration11
SocketFCLGA1700FCBGA1781
Power consumption (TDP)125 Watt9 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2
AES-NI++
FMA+-
AVX++
vPro+no data
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)++
Speed Shift++
Turbo Boost Technology2.0no data
Hyper-Threading Technology++
TSX-+
Idle States+no data
Thermal Monitoring++
Flex Memory Accessno data-
SIPP+-
Turbo Boost Max 3.0-no data
Deep Learning Boost++

Security technologies

Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT++
EDB++
Secure Key++
OS Guard++

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U are enumerated here.

VT-d++
VT-x++
EPT++

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4, DDR5DDR4, DDR5
Maximum memory size128 GB64 GB
Max memory channels22
Maximum memory bandwidth76.805 GB/sno data
ECC memory support+-

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardIntel UHD Graphics 770Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics eligible
Quick Sync Video++
Clear Video HD+no data
Graphics max frequency1.45 GHz850 MHz
Execution Units3280

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported44

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

Max resolution over HDMI 1.44096 x 2160 @ 60Hz4096 x 2304 @ 60Hz
Max resolution over eDP5120 x 3200 @ 120Hz4096 x 2304 @ 120Hz
Max resolution over DisplayPort7680 x 4320 @ 60Hz7680 x 4320 @ 60Hz

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX1212.1
OpenGL4.54.6

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U.

PCIe version5.0 and 4.04.0
PCI Express lanes2014

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.

i5-12600K 17.43
+152%
i5-1230U 6.91

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.

i5-12600K 27683
+152%
i5-1230U 10977

GeekBench 5 Single-Core

GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.

i5-12600K 2479
+55.1%
i5-1230U 1598

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.

i5-12600K 11846
+115%
i5-1230U 5513

Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core

Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.

i5-12600K 9381
+28.7%
i5-1230U 7290

Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.

i5-12600K 55462
+222%
i5-1230U 17243

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.

i5-12600K 15722
+137%
i5-1230U 6641

wPrime 32

wPrime 32M is a math multi-thread processor test, which calculates square roots of first 32 million integer numbers. Its result is measured in seconds, so that the less is benchmark result, the faster the processor.

i5-12600K 4.73
+196%
i5-1230U 14

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

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

i5-12600K 2555
+397%
i5-1230U 514

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.

i5-12600K 275
+47.2%
i5-1230U 187

WinRAR 4.0

WinRAR 4.0 is an outdated version of a popular file archiver. It contains an internal speed test, using 'Best' setting of RAR compression on large chunks of randomly generated data. Its results are measured in kilobytes per second.

i5-12600K 6239
+25.2%
i5-1230U 4985

x264 encoding pass 2

x264 Pass 2 is a slower variant of x264 video compression that produces a variable bit rate output file, which results in better quality since the higher bit rate is used when it is needed more. Benchmark result is still measured in frames per second.  

i5-12600K 148
+254%
i5-1230U 42

x264 encoding pass 1

x264 version 4.0 is a video encoding benchmark uses MPEG 4 x264 compression method to compress a sample HD (720p) video. Pass 1 is a faster variant that produces a constant bit rate output file. Its result is measured in frames per second, which means how many frames of the source video file were encoded per second.  

i5-12600K 334
+118%
i5-1230U 153

Geekbench 5.5 Multi-Core

i5-12600K 12797
+89.4%
i5-1230U 6755

Blender(-)

i5-12600K 190
i5-1230U 754
+298%

Geekbench 5.5 Single-Core

i5-12600K 1904
+24.5%
i5-1230U 1529

7-Zip Single

i5-12600K 5944
+49.8%
i5-1230U 3969

7-Zip

i5-12600K 64260
+220%
i5-1230U 20092

WebXPRT 3

i5-12600K 293
+25.5%
i5-1230U 234

CrossMark Overall

i5-12600K 1637
+24.8%
i5-1230U 1312

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 17.43 6.91
Recency 4 November 2021 23 February 2022
Threads 16 12
Power consumption (TDP) 125 Watt 9 Watt

i5-12600K has a 152.2% higher aggregate performance score, and 33.3% more threads.

i5-1230U, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 3 months, and 1288.9% lower power consumption.

The Core i5-12600K is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i5-1230U in performance tests.

Note that Core i5-12600K is a desktop processor while Core i5-1230U is a notebook one.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-12600K and Core i5-1230U, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

Vote for your favorite

Do you think we are right or mistaken in our choice? Vote by clicking "Like" button near your favorite CPU.


Intel Core i5-12600K
Core i5-12600K
Intel Core i5-1230U
Core i5-1230U

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Community ratings

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Questions & comments

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