Intel's Core i5 and Core i7 Coffee Lake CPUs hit the Turbo button for fast clocks

While nothing is yet official from Intel, it is expected that new 14nm processors based on its upcoming Coffee Lake architecture will launch soon, perhaps as early as Gamescom next month. There have been several leaks in regards to Coffee Lake, the latest of which comes from Anandtech, which posted full specifications for four Core i7 and Core i5 SKUs (two each).

We are not sure where the information was obtained from, but if it is accurate, Coffee Lake will initially consist of of the Core i5-8400, Core i5-8600K, Core i7-8700, and Core i7-8700K. There are quite a few specs and clockspeeds to cover, so let's jump right in.

Starting at the bottom, the Core i5-8400 will be a 6-core processor that does not support Hyper Threading. It will have 9MB of L3 cache and a 65W TDP. At stock settings, it will have a 2.8GHz base clock and a 3.8GHz Turbo clock on all six cores, and a 4GHz in single-core mode. If engaging two or four cores, it will be able to hit 3.9GHz via Turbo.

The Core i5-8600K is also a 6-core/6-thread processor with 9MB of L3 cache, but with a higher 95W TDP and an unlocked multiplier to make overclocking easier. Clockspeeds are higher too, with a 3.6GHz base and 4.1GHz Turbo on all cores, and a 4.3GHz Turbo speed in single-core mode. If engaging two or four cores, it can hit 4.2GHz via Turbo.

Moving onto the Core i7 processors, the Core i7-8700 is a 6-core/12-thread chip, meaning it supports HyperThreading. L3 cache is bumped up to 12MB, with the TDP rated at 65W. According to the leaked specs, it will have a 3.2GHz base clock and 4.3GHz Turbo clock on all cores, and a 4.6GHz single-core Turbo speed. Four cores will be able to hit a Turbo of 4.3GHz as well, while the Turbo clock for engaging two cores tops out at 4.5GHz.

Finally, the Core i7-8700K is an unlocked 6-core/12-thread chip with 12MB of L3 cache and a 95W TDP. It is the fastest of the bunch with a 3.7GHz base clock, 4.3GHz Turbo clock on all six cores, and a 4.7GHz Turbo clock in single-core mode. When activating two cores, it can hit 4.6GHz, while the Turbo clock for four cores is 4.4GHz.

What we don't know yet are pricing details for any of these processors. AMD came out aggressive over the weekend by announcing a new Threadripper 1900X processor with 8 cores and 16 threads for $549. If Intel prices these chips too high, it could drive users to Threadripper, which offers up access to 64 PCIe lanes.

Either way, it's nice to see Intel's Coffee Lake chips topping 4GHz on all six cores in Turbo Mode, save for the Core i5-8400.

Paul Lilly

Paul has been playing PC games and raking his knuckles on computer hardware since the Commodore 64. He does not have any tattoos, but thinks it would be cool to get one that reads LOAD"*",8,1. In his off time, he rides motorcycles and wrestles alligators (only one of those is true).