[Comparison] Intel Core i7-10870H vs Intel Core i9-10980HK – The Core i9 wins, but the Core i7 is dangerously close

LaptopMedia.com News [Comparison] Intel Core i7-10870H vs Intel Core i9-10980HK - The Core i9 wins, but the Core i7 is dangerously close

From: Severin Kolakov 11 February 2021 / 06:57 | 0

The Intel of old that was on top of everyone might be gone, but they still make damn good and very powerful processors, that can be even better than AMD’s offerings in certain areas.

Today we are here to compare two Intel CPUs that while maybe a bit old now, still offer crazy performance that will be showcased today. Today we have the Intel Core i7-10870H going up against Intel’s halo product, the Intel Core i9-10980HK.

You can check out our Top Laptop CPU Ranking, where we have the best mobile and laptop CPUs.

You can find more information about both CPUs here: Intel Core i7-10870H / Intel Core i9-10980HK

Specs table

	Intel Core i7-10870H	Intel Core i9-10980HK
Architecture	Comet Lake-H	Comet Lake H
Cores / Threads	8/16	8/16
Clock Speeds – Base/Boost	2.20 – 5.00GHz	2.40 – 5.10GHz
Cache	16MB	16MB
Lithography	14nm	14nm
TDP	35 / 45W	45W
Memory type	DDR4-2933MHz	DDR4-2933MHz
Integrated GPU	Intel UHD Graphics 630	Intel UHD Graphics 630

CPU benchmarks

In the 3D Rendering benchmark with Cinebench 15, the Intel Core i9-10980HK was 7% better, which shows exactly how good the i7-10870H. Being that close to the Core i9- is definitely something and even some AMD CPUs haven’t been able to do that. The Photoshop results were exactly the same, with both processors finishing the benchmark in 5.35 seconds.

3D Rendering

Results are from the Cinebench 20 CPU test (the higher the score, the better)

Intel Core i7-10870H MSI GP76 Leopard (10UE)

4042

Intel Core i9-10980HK ASUS ROG STRIX SCAR 17 (G732LXS-HG066R)

3756

Conclusion

Wow, we didn’t expect the Core i7-10870H to perform this close to a Core i9, and while it still lost, we have to give it props for that alone. The Core i9 was 7% better in 3D Rendering and as far as Photoshop was concerned, both CPUs finished the test in 5.35 seconds exactly. The price is the only factor that you should consider as we don’t believe the 7% increase in performance is worth the top dollar that laptops with the Core i9 go for.