i7-6850K vs Ryzen Z2
Aggregate performance score
Ryzen Z2 outperforms Core i7-6850K by a small 7% 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 | 1031 | 1064 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | no data | 1.41 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Desktop processor |
| Series | AMD Hawk Point (Zen 4/4c) | no data |
| Power efficiency | 26.17 | 4.88 |
| Designer | AMD | Intel |
| Manufacturer | no data | Intel |
| Architecture codename | Hawk Point-U (Zen 4) (2023−2025) | Broadwell-E (2016) |
| Release date | 6 January 2025 (less than a year ago) | 31 May 2016 (8 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | no data | $475 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Detailed specifications
Ryzen Z2 and Core i7-6850K 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 | 8 (Octa-Core) | 6 (Hexa-Core) |
| Threads | 16 | 12 |
| Base clock speed | 3.3 GHz | 3.6 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 5.1 GHz | 4 GHz |
| L1 cache | 512 KB | 32 KB (per core) |
| L2 cache | 8 MB | 256 KB (per core) |
| L3 cache | 16 MB | 15 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 4 nm | 14 nm |
| Die size | 178 mm2 | no data |
| Maximum core temperature | 100 °C | no data |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | no data | 72 °C |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | no data | - |
| Unlocked multiplier | - | + |
Compatibility
Information on Ryzen Z2 and Core i7-6850K 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 | no data | 1 |
| Socket | FP7/FP7r2/FP8 | FCLGA2011 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 28 Watt | 140 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Ryzen Z2 and Core i7-6850K. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | AES, AVX, AVX2, AVX512, FMA3, MMX (+), SHA, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A, SSSE3 | no data |
| AES-NI | + | + |
| AVX | + | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | no data | + |
| Turbo Boost Technology | no data | 2.0 |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | no data | + |
| Idle States | no data | + |
| Smart Response | no data | + |
| Turbo Boost Max 3.0 | no data | + |
Security technologies
Ryzen Z2 and Core i7-6850K technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | no data | + |
| EDB | no data | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Ryzen Z2 and Core i7-6850K are enumerated here.
| VT-d | no data | + |
| VT-x | no data | + |
| EPT | no data | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Ryzen Z2 and Core i7-6850K. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR5 | DDR4 |
| Maximum memory size | no data | 128 GB |
| Max memory channels | no data | 4 |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | AMD Radeon 780M | no data |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Ryzen Z2 and Core i7-6850K.
| PCIe version | no data | 3.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | no data | 40 |
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.
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.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 7.65 | 7.13 |
| Recency | 6 January 2025 | 31 May 2016 |
| Physical cores | 8 | 6 |
| Threads | 16 | 12 |
| Chip lithography | 4 nm | 14 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 28 Watt | 140 Watt |
Ryzen Z2 has a 7.3% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 8 years, 33.3% more physical cores and 33.3% more threads, a 250% more advanced lithography process, and 400% lower power consumption.
Given the minimal performance differences, no clear winner can be declared between AMD Ryzen Z2 and Intel Core i7-6850K.
Be aware that Ryzen Z2 is a notebook processor while Core i7-6850K is a desktop one.
Other comparisons
We've compiled a selection of CPU comparisons, ranging from closely matched processors to other comparisons that may be of interest.
