Intel Core i7-12700KF

Written analysis

Intel Core i7-12700KF at a glance

The Intel Core i7-12700KF is based on the Alder Lake-S architecture and is manufactured using the 10 nm process at Intel. It uses the LGA 1700 socket with Z690, H670, B660, H610 chipsets, PCIe Gen 4, 20 Lanes (CPU only), and DDR4, DDR5 memory up to 4800 MT/s across Dual-channel memory. This is a hybrid design with 8 performance cores at 3.60–5.00 GHz and 4 efficiency cores at 2.70–3.80 GHz, for 20 threads. Cache is 1280 kB L2 and 25 MB L3.

This is a Desktop processor using consumer memory and expansion standards. Its workload suitability is better described by the measured application and gaming scores below than by core count alone.

Base TDP is 125 W and maximum package power is 190 W. Use a high-capacity air or liquid cooler if the system will hold boost clocks under long workloads.

This CPU has no integrated graphics. A discrete graphics card is required for display output.

Best fit: Cost-conscious desktop builds paired with a discrete GPU and workloads appropriate to its measured tier.

Application performance

Intel Core i7-12700KF is a mid-range CPU, at 50.88% of the dataset’s best application performance. Strong for daily work and light creation; heavy renders will take longer.

Application value is balanced at 58.7 performance per dollar.

Gaming performance

Intel Core i7-12700KF is a mid-range gaming CPU, at 73.88% of the dataset’s best 1080p CPU-limited gaming. Match it with a mid-range GPU.

Gaming value is mid-pack at 56.0 performance per dollar.