Intel Core i7-4700HQ vs Core i7-3720QM

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Combined performance score

i7-3720QM
3.71
+0.8%

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 1% in our combined benchmark results.

General info

Comparing Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in performance ranking13741383
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Market segmentLaptopLaptop
SeriesIntel Core i7Intel Core i7
Architecture codenameIvy Bridge (2012−2013)Crystalwell (2013−2014)
Release date29 April 2012 (11 years old)27 May 2013 (10 years old)
Launch price (MSRP)$378$378
Current price$454 (1.2x MSRP)$877 (2.3x MSRP)

Technical specs

Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ 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 cores4 (Quad-Core)4 (Quad-Core)
Threads88
Base clock speed2.6 GHz2.4 GHz
Boost clock speed3.6 GHz3.4 GHz
L1 cache64K (per core)64K (per core)
L2 cache256K (per core)256K (per core)
L3 cache6 MB (shared)8 MB (shared)
Chip lithography22 nm22 nm
Die size160 mm2264 mm2
Maximum core temperature105 °C100 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)no data100 °C
Number of transistors1,400 million1,400 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility--
Unlocked multiplierNoNo

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ 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
SocketFCBGA1224,FCPGA988FCBGA1364
Power consumption (TDP)45 Watt47 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® AVXIntel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2
AES-NI++
AVX++
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)++
My WiFi+no data
Turbo Boost Technology2.02.0
Hyper-Threading Technology++
TSXno data-
Idle States++
Thermal Monitoring++
Flex Memory Access+no data
Demand Based Switching-no data
FDI++
Fast Memory Access+no data
StatusDiscontinuedDiscontinued

Security technologies

Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT++
EDB++
Secure Key++
Identity Protection++
Anti-Theft++

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ 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 i7-4700HQ. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR3DDR3
Maximum memory size32 GB32 GB
Max memory channels22
Maximum memory bandwidth25.6 GB/s25.6 GB/s
ECC memory support--

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card
Compare
Intel HD Graphics 4000Intel HD Graphics 4600
Max video memoryno data2 GB
Quick Sync Video++
Clear Video HD++
Graphics max frequency1.25 GHz1.2 GHz
InTru 3D++

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported33
eDP++
DisplayPort++
HDMI++
VGAno data+
SDVO+no data
CRT+no data

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

Max resolution over HDMI 1.4no data3840x2160@30Hz
Max resolution over DisplayPortno data3840x2160@60Hz
Max resolution over VGAno data2880x1800@60Hz

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectXno data11.2/12
OpenGLno data4.3

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ.

PCIe version3.03
PCI Express lanes1616

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.

i7-3720QM 3.71
+0.8%
i7-4700HQ 3.68

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 1% in our combined 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%

i7-3720QM 5694
+0.8%
i7-4700HQ 5651

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 1% 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%

i7-3720QM 600
i7-4700HQ 982
+63.7%

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 64% 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%

i7-3720QM 2021
i7-4700HQ 3053
+51.1%

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 51% 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%

i7-3720QM 4821
i7-4700HQ 4895
+1.5%

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 2% 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%

i7-3720QM 18879
+1.5%
i7-4700HQ 18609

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 1% in Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 19%

i7-3720QM 6642
i7-4700HQ 6759
+1.8%

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 2% in 3DMark06 CPU.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 18%

i7-3720QM 7.85
+3.1%
i7-4700HQ 8.09

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 3% in wPrime 32.

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%

i7-3720QM 7
i7-4700HQ 7
+3%

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 3% 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%

i7-3720QM 610
i7-4700HQ 637
+4.4%

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 4% 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%

i7-3720QM 126
i7-4700HQ 132
+4.8%

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 5% 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%

i7-3720QM 1.47
i7-4700HQ 1.5
+2%

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 2% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core.

TrueCrypt AES

TrueCrypt is a discontinued piece of software that was widely used for on-the-fly-encryption of disk partitions, now superseded by VeraCrypt. It contains several embedded performance tests, one of them being TrueCrypt AES, which measures data encryption speed using AES algorithm. Result is encryption speed in gigabytes per second.

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i7-3720QM 3.3
i7-4700HQ 3.8
+13.6%

Core i7-4700HQ outperforms Core i7-3720QM by 14% in TrueCrypt AES.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i7-3720QM 4365
+0.9%
i7-4700HQ 4325

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 1% in WinRAR 4.0.

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.  

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i7-3720QM 147
+4%
i7-4700HQ 141

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 4% in x264 encoding pass 1.

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.  

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i7-3720QM 37
+8.8%
i7-4700HQ 34

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 9% in x264 encoding pass 2.

Geekbench 3 32-bit single-core

Benchmark coverage: 5%

i7-3720QM 3898
+23.5%
i7-4700HQ 3156

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 24% in Geekbench 3 32-bit single-core.

Geekbench 3 32-bit multi-core

Benchmark coverage: 5%

i7-3720QM 14452
+21.4%
i7-4700HQ 11900

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 21% in Geekbench 3 32-bit multi-core.

3DMark Fire Strike Physics

Benchmark coverage: 4%

i7-3720QM 6190
+3%
i7-4700HQ 6010

Core i7-3720QM outperforms Core i7-4700HQ by 3% in 3DMark Fire Strike Physics.

Gaming performance

Advantages and disadvantages


Performance score 3.71 3.68
Integrated graphics card 1.17 1.83
Recency 29 April 2012 27 May 2013
Power consumption (TDP) 45 Watt 47 Watt

We couldn't decide between Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ. The differences in performance seem too small.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-3720QM and Core i7-4700HQ, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

User ratings

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Intel Core i7-3720QM
Core i7-3720QM
Intel Core i7-4700HQ
Core i7-4700HQ

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