Intel Core i9-7980XE vs Intel Core i7-12700K

Core i9-7980XE vs Core i7-12700K specs and performance

Our benchmark analysis concludes that the Core i7-12700K performs better than the Core i9-7980XE. Furthermore, our gaming benchmark shows that it also outperforms the Core i9-7980XE in all gaming tests too.

In terms of the number of cores of each of these CPUs, the Core i9-7980XE has significantly more cores than the Core i7-12700K. Indeed, the Core i9-7980XE has 18 cores compared to 12 cores found in the Core i7-12700K. It also has more threads than the Core i7-12700K. These CPUs have different clock speeds. Indeed, the Core i7-12700K has a slightly higher clock speed compared to the Core i9-7980XE. Also, the Core i7-12700K has a slightly higher turbo speed. A Core i9-7980XE CPU outputs less heat than a Core i7-12700K CPU because of its slightly lower TDP. This measures the amount of heat they output and can be used to estimate power consumption.

Most CPUs have more threads than cores. This technology, colloquially called hyperthreading, improves performance by splitting a core into multiple virtual ones. This provides more efficient utilisation of a core. Indeed, the Core i9-7980XE has more threads than cores. Each physical core is split into multiple threads.