Core i5-4590 vs Core i7-3720QM
Aggregated performance score
Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i5-4590 by 6% based on our aggregated benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in performance ranking | 1392 | 1444 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | 47 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | no data | 1.44 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Desktop processor |
| Series | Intel Core i7 | Core i5 (Desktop) |
| Architecture codename | Ivy Bridge (2012−2013) | Haswell (2013−2015) |
| Release date | 29 April 2012 (12 years ago) | 1 May 2014 (10 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $378 | $202 |
| Current price | $454 (1.2x MSRP) | $87 (0.4x MSRP) |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Detailed specifications
Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590 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) | 4 (Quad-Core) |
| Threads | 8 | 4 |
| Base clock speed | 2.6 GHz | 3.3 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3.6 GHz | 3.7 GHz |
| L1 cache | 64K (per core) | 64K (per core) |
| L2 cache | 256K (per core) | 256K (per core) |
| L3 cache | 6 MB (shared) | 6 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 22 nm | 22 nm |
| Die size | 160 mm2 | 177 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | 105 °C | 73 °C |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | no data | 72 °C |
| Number of transistors | 1,400 million | 1,400 million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
| Unlocked multiplier | No | No |
Compatibility
Information on Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590 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 | 1 |
| Socket | FCBGA1224,FCPGA988 | FCLGA1150 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 45 Watt | 84 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® AVX | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2 |
| AES-NI | + | + |
| AVX | + | + |
| vPro | no data | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| My WiFi | + | + |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | - |
| TSX | no data | - |
| Idle States | + | + |
| Thermal Monitoring | + | + |
| Flex Memory Access | + | no data |
| SIPP | no data | + |
| Demand Based Switching | - | no data |
| FDI | + | + |
| Fast Memory Access | + | no data |
| Status | Discontinued | Discontinued |
Security technologies
Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | + |
| EDB | + | + |
| Secure Key | + | + |
| Identity Protection | + | + |
| OS Guard | no data | + |
| Anti-Theft | + | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590 are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | + | + |
| VT-d | + | + |
| VT-x | + | + |
| EPT | + | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | DDR3 |
| Maximum memory size | 32 GB | 32 GB |
| Max memory channels | 2 | 2 |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 25.6 GB/s | 25.6 GB/s |
| ECC memory support | - | - |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card Compare | Intel HD Graphics 4000 | Intel HD Graphics 4600 |
| Max video memory | no data | 2 GB |
| Quick Sync Video | + | + |
| Clear Video HD | + | + |
| Graphics max frequency | 1.25 GHz | 1.15 GHz |
| InTru 3D | + | + |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590 integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | 3 | 3 |
| eDP | + | + |
| DisplayPort | + | + |
| HDMI | + | + |
| VGA | no data | + |
| SDVO | + | no data |
| CRT | + | no data |
Graphics image quality
Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590 integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.
| Max resolution over HDMI 1.4 | no data | 4096x2304@24Hz |
| Max resolution over eDP | no data | 3840x2160@60Hz |
| Max resolution over DisplayPort | no data | 3840x2160@60Hz |
| Max resolution over VGA | no data | 1920x1200@60Hz |
Graphics API support
APIs supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590 integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.
| DirectX | no data | 11.2/12 |
| OpenGL | no data | 4.3 |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590.
| PCIe version | 3.0 | Up to 3.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | 16 | 16 |
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.
Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i5-4590 by 6% based on our aggregated benchmark results.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 68%
Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i5-4590 by 6% in Passmark.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 42%
Core i5-4590 outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 88% in GeekBench 5 Single-Core.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 42%
Core i5-4590 outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 55% in GeekBench 5 Multi-Core.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 20%
Core i5-4590 outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 14% in Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 19%
Core i5-4590 outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 1% in Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core.
Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core
Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.
Benchmark coverage: 17%
Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i5-4590 by 14% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core.
Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core
Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.
Benchmark coverage: 15%
Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i5-4590 by 15% in Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 15%
Core i5-4590 outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 16% in Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core.
Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core
Cinebench R11.5 is an old benchmark 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 loads a single thread with ray tracing to render a glossy room full of crystal spheres and light sources.
Benchmark coverage: 14%
Core i5-4590 outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 11% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core.
3DMark Fire Strike Physics
Benchmark coverage: 4%
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 3.68 | 3.47 |
| Integrated graphics card | 1.17 | 1.83 |
| Recency | 29 April 2012 | 1 May 2014 |
| Threads | 8 | 4 |
| Cost | $378 | $202 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 45 Watt | 84 Watt |
Given the minimal performance differences, no clear winner can be declared between Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590.
Be aware that Core i7-3720QM is a notebook processor while Core i5-4590 is a desktop one.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-3720QM and Core i5-4590, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
Similar processor comparisons
We picked several similar comparisons of processors in the same market segment and performance relatively close to those reviewed on this page.
