Jump to content

i3 8100 vs i5 8400 (speed v cores)

I am currently looking at buying a new PC and within my budget the i3 8100 and i5 8400 keep popping up, however, one thing I have never truly understood is clock speed vs cores; the i3 8100 clocks at 3.60 vs i5's 2.80, but the i3 has 2 fewer cores and 3mb smaller cache; the i3 appears to be faster but the i5 appears to be able to handle more.

 

My limited understanding lends me to think that more cores = better, even if the clock speed is slower, but it surely cannot be that simple. I have tried to find the answer online but everywhere I end up gives reasoning towards gaming, but what I need is a PC for work.

 

Can anyone help me understand when more cores is beneficial and what kind of programs/usage requires multiple cores; i.e. would the 6 cores on the i5 be fully utilised or would only types of program benefit from them?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

If your going for work, HARD i5 8400. But if you are doing work, I would probably get something like a i7. 

I am faster than 80% of all snakes

cpu: AMD Fx-8350

motherboard: GIGABYTE 970 (am3+)

RAM: 16gb ddr3 adata

gpu: AMD xfx rx 560 2gb

psu: 500w

storage: 1tb hdd

I am what you call “budget gamer”

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, YourCrush1234 said:

If your going for work, HARD i5 8400. But if you are doing work, I would probably get something like a i7. 

I'm not following you (and I can't afford an i7).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, compufix said:

 

Just buy an R5 1600 or 2600?
 

more cores/threads is certainly not always better, but  Ryzen's value is just so nice it's an easy recommendation IMO

 

if a game doesn't use more than 4 threads effectively then it doesn't matter if you have 32 cores/64 threads. Unless you wanted to run 8 instances of the game in question.

I edit my posts a lot, Twitter is @LordStreetguru just don't ask PC questions there mostly...
 

Spoiler

 

What is your budget/country for your new PC?

 

what monitor resolution/refresh rate?

 

What games or other software do you need to run?

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

ever heared about turbo clocks? they are meant for this... ryzen 1600/1700/2600/2700/1800x would be a way better option. and if you have some serious work and budget, take a look into the cowtipper... er treadripper

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

The i3 will run slower than the i5 because the i5 will boost up to 3.8 GHz all cores

I WILL find your ITX build thread, and I WILL recommend the SIlverstone Sugo SG13B

 

Primary PC:

i7 8086k - EVGA Z370 Classified K - G.Skill Trident Z RGB - WD SN750 - Jedi Order Titan Xp - Hyper 212 Black (with RGB Riing flair) - EVGA G3 650W - dual booting Windows 10 and Linux - Black and green theme, Razer brainwashed me.

Draws 400 watts under max load, for reference.

 

How many watts do I needATX 3.0 & PCIe 5.0 spec, PSU misconceptions, protections explainedgroup reg is bad

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×