i3-8121U vs i9-7900X
Aggregate performance score
Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i3-8121U by a whopping 388% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Contents
Primary details
Comparing processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 705 | 1932 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 2.17 | no data |
| Market segment | Desktop processor | Laptop |
| Series | Core i9 (Desktop) | Intel Core i3 |
| Power efficiency | 3.60 | 3.68 |
| Designer | Intel | Intel |
| Manufacturer | Intel | Intel |
| Architecture codename | Skylake (server) (2017−2018) | Coffee Lake-U (2018−2019) |
| Release date | 26 June 2017 (8 years ago) | 5 May 2018 (7 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $999 | no data |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Performance to price scatter graph
Detailed specifications
Core i9-7900X and Core i3-8121U 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 | 10 (Deca-Core) | 2 (Dual-core) |
| Threads | 20 | 4 |
| Base clock speed | 3.3 GHz | 2.2 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 4.5 GHz | 3.2 GHz |
| Bus type | DMI 3.0 | OPI |
| Bus rate | 4 × 8 GT/s | 4 GT/s |
| Multiplier | 33 | 22 |
| L1 cache | 64 KB (per core) | 64K (per core) |
| L2 cache | 1 MB (per core) | 256K (per core) |
| L3 cache | 14 MB (shared) | 4 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 14 nm | 10 nm |
| Die size | no data | 123 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | 95 °C | 105 °C |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | 72 °C | 72 °C |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | + | - |
| Unlocked multiplier | + | - |
Compatibility
Information on Core i9-7900X and Core i3-8121U 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 | Socket R4 | Intel BGA1440 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 140 Watt | 15 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i3-8121U. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512 | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512 |
| AES-NI | + | + |
| AVX | + | + |
| vPro | + | - |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| QuickAssist | no data | - |
| Speed Shift | no data | + |
| My WiFi | no data | + |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | + |
| TSX | + | - |
| Idle States | no data | + |
| Thermal Monitoring | - | + |
| Flex Memory Access | no data | + |
| Smart Response | no data | + |
| Demand Based Switching | no data | - |
| Turbo Boost Max 3.0 | + | no data |
| HD Audio | no data | + |
| RST | no data | + |
Security technologies
Core i9-7900X and Core i3-8121U technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | no data | - |
| EDB | + | + |
| Secure Key | no data | + |
| MPX | - | + |
| SGX | no data | - |
| OS Guard | no data | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i3-8121U are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | + | - |
| VT-d | + | + |
| VT-x | + | + |
| VT-i | no data | - |
| EPT | no data | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i3-8121U. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR4 | DDR4 |
| Maximum memory size | 128 GB | 32 GB |
| Max memory channels | 4 | 2 |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 85.33 GB/s | 38.397 GB/s |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | N/A | Iris Pro Plus |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i3-8121U.
| PCIe version | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | 44 | 16 |
Synthetic benchmarks
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.
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. Other than that, Passmark measures multi-core performance.
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.
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.
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.
Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core
Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.
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.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 11.91 | 2.44 |
| Recency | 26 June 2017 | 5 May 2018 |
| Physical cores | 10 | 2 |
| Threads | 20 | 4 |
| Chip lithography | 14 nm | 10 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 140 Watt | 15 Watt |
i9-7900X has a 388.1% higher aggregate performance score, and 400% more physical cores and 400% more threads.
i3-8121U, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 10 months, a 40% more advanced lithography process, and 833.3% lower power consumption.
The Intel Core i9-7900X is our recommended choice as it beats the Intel Core i3-8121U in performance tests.
Note that Core i9-7900X is a desktop processor while Core i3-8121U is a notebook one.
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