i3-7120 vs i5-6600K
Primary details
Comparing Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 1415 | not rated |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 0.73 | no data |
| Market segment | Desktop processor | Desktop processor |
| Series | Intel Core i5 (Desktop) | Intel Core i3 |
| Power efficiency | 4.14 | no data |
| Architecture codename | Skylake (2015−2016) | Kaby Lake (2016−2019) |
| Release date | 5 August 2015 (9 years ago) | 17 July 2017 (7 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $242 | $117 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Detailed specifications
Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120 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 | 4 (Quad-Core) | 2 (Dual-core) |
| Threads | 4 | 4 |
| Base clock speed | 3.5 GHz | 4 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3.9 GHz | 4 GHz |
| Bus type | DMI 3.0 | DMI 3.0 |
| Bus rate | 4 × 8 GT/s | 8 GT/s |
| Multiplier | 35 | 40 |
| L1 cache | 64 KB (per core) | 128 KB |
| L2 cache | 256 KB (per core) | 512 KB |
| L3 cache | 6 MB (shared) | 3 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 14 nm | 14 nm |
| Die size | 122 mm2 | no data |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | 64 °C | 65 °C |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
| Unlocked multiplier | + | - |
Compatibility
Information on Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120 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 (Uniprocessor) |
| Socket | FCLGA1151 | 1151 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 91 Watt | 51 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2 | no data |
| AES-NI | + | + |
| AVX | + | + |
| vPro | + | no data |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | - | no data |
| TSX | + | + |
| Idle States | + | no data |
| Thermal Monitoring | + | - |
Security technologies
Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | - | no data |
| EDB | + | no data |
| Secure Key | + | no data |
| MPX | + | - |
| Identity Protection | + | - |
| SGX | Yes with Intel® ME | no data |
| OS Guard | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120 are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | + | - |
| VT-d | + | no data |
| VT-x | + | no data |
| EPT | + | no data |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3, DDR4 | DDR4 Dual-channel |
| Maximum memory size | 64 GB | 64 GB |
| Max memory channels | 2 | 2 |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 34.134 GB/s | 38.397 GB/s |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card Compare | Intel HD Graphics 530 | Intel HD Graphics 630 |
| Max video memory | 64 GB | no data |
| Quick Sync Video | + | - |
| Clear Video | + | no data |
| Clear Video HD | + | no data |
| Graphics max frequency | 1.15 GHz | no data |
| InTru 3D | + | no data |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120 integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | 3 | no data |
| eDP | + | no data |
| DisplayPort | + | - |
| HDMI | + | - |
| DVI | + | no data |
Graphics image quality
Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120 integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.
| 4K resolution support | + | no data |
| Max resolution over HDMI 1.4 | 4096x2304@24Hz | no data |
| Max resolution over eDP | 4096x2304@60Hz | no data |
| Max resolution over DisplayPort | 4096x2304@60Hz | no data |
| Max resolution over VGA | N/A | no data |
Graphics API support
APIs supported by Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120 integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.
| DirectX | 12 | no data |
| OpenGL | 4.5 | no data |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120.
| PCIe version | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | 16 | 16 |
Pros & cons summary
| Integrated graphics card | 2.59 | 3.10 |
| Recency | 5 August 2015 | 17 July 2017 |
| Physical cores | 4 | 2 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 91 Watt | 51 Watt |
i5-6600K has 100% more physical cores.
i3-7120, on the other hand, has 19.7% faster integrated GPU, an age advantage of 1 year, and 78.4% lower power consumption.
We couldn't decide between Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120. We've got no test results to judge.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-6600K and Core i3-7120, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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