Intel Core i3-8121U vs Intel Pentium Silver N6000

Processor comparisons   20-01-2022
   You may have difficulties with the choice of a CPU, you will solve them by reading the detailed tests Intel Core i3-8121U vs Intel Pentium Silver N6000 and see which is better for games or normal use for video editing, rendering, programming, streaming, machine learning. Here you can find all information from various benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A thorough analysis of all the specifications, so that it can be easier to read, is summarized in the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of parallel examination in software tests such as Handbrake, Dolphin Emulator, MATLAB, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, 3DMark, Furmark, VeraCrypt, AIDA64, SuperPi, WPrime, Blender, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Prime95, UserBenchmark, GeekBench 6, 5.2, PCMark 10, Gears 5, RealBench, Blender, 7zip, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), PassMark.
   Gaming performance of processors in:

Valheim
Fallout 76
Watch Dogs Legion
Borderlands 3
Overwatch
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands
Death Stranding
Halo Infinite
Fortnite
Red Dead Redemption 2
Grand Theft Auto V
Last Man Standing
DOOM: Eternal
Valorant
Apex Legends
Rainbow Six Siege
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Call of Duty: Warzone and Modern Warfare
Cyberpunk 2077

After reading the results these benchmarks and videos, you can already make an informed decision about which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Pentium Silver N6000 or Intel Core i3-8121U.

Summary benchmark results

As a percentage of the maximum value based on a sample from the entire base of all processors
Processor Benchmark

Core i3-8121U

51%

Pentium Silver N6000

51%

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Core i3-8121U

51%

Pentium Silver N6000

51%

For the maximum in this test, the results of the most powerful processor in the site database are taken. And of course, this is a server processor, on which no one will run games. Because the cost of this processor reaches several tens of thousands of dollars. Therefore, if you think that the selected CPU has a low game result, just look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which CPU comparisons were performed: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Battlefield V, League of Legends (LOL), Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Horizon Zero Dawn, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Metro Exodus, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Hitman 3, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Ghostrunner, NBA 2K20, Monster Hunter World, Control, DOTA 2A, Half-Life: Alyx, Forza Horizon 4.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	90.1	90.1
Valorant	102.4	102.4
Cyberpunk 2077	57.3	57.3
Apex Legends	96.2	96.2
Call of Duty Warzone	76.8	76.8
Overwatch	82.9	82.9
Red Dead Redemption 2	70.6	70.6
DOOM Eternal	51.2	51.2
Warzone	79.9	79.8
Assassin's Creed	86.0	86.0
Valheim	85.0	85.0

The numbers in this table indicate the maximum FPS that was received on the device with the corresponding processor. Depending on the configuration of the computer (RAM size and Video Card) and graphics quality settings (Ultra, Medium, Normal), the results may differ quite significantly. We recommend that you better study the results of the Cinebench, GeekBench and Passmark becnmarks.
The tested computers not only did they have different amounts of RAM and different video cards. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: FullHD, 2K or 4K. So the game benchmark data is approximate. But all video cards met the average system requirements of games. You will get more accurate information about how powerful the processor will be in games, if you compare it in one assembly with the video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

Core i3-8121U

200%

Pentium Silver N6000

385%

To make a finishing resolution on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. It is clear that the newer the generation, the better the performance of the processor in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the Pentium Silver N6000 is more energy efficient than the Core i3-8121U as it consumes less power: 15W vs. 6W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, it will be useful to know its TDP. You need to buy a cooler that has the TDP data specified in the specification was greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

Let's say you want to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for machine learning, streaming, programming, video editing or video rendering, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, the processor uses all cores and threads that it has to the maximum to achieve maximum performance. You will learn this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using the data from these tests, be sure to make sure that the program that you are going to use on your computer can work in multi-threaded mode. Because there are still many programs that can use only one core to work, and all the advantages of multi-core mode are unused.
Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	Intel Core i3-8121U	Intel Pentium Silver N6000
Cinbench 15 Single-core	139	103
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	305	342
Cinbench 20 Single-core	340	212
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	598	788
Cinbench 23 Single-core	563	676
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	2184	2502

Passmark
This popular benchmark displays Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	Intel Core i3-8121U	Intel Pentium Silver N6000
Single-Core	1939	1529
Multi-Core	4369	4044

GeekBench 6, 5.2
This benchmark shows Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	Intel Core i3-8121U	Intel Pentium Silver N6000
Single-Core	901	693
Multi-Core	2063	2029

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most helpful will be the the possibility of overclocking it and release date of the processor. The newer the processor, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system later. The same benefits from the presence of overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS in new games. The economy are obvious! It turns out that there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Intel Core i3-8121U	Intel Pentium Silver N6000
Announcement date	July 07, 2018	January 01, 2020
Type	Laptop	Laptop
Socket	Unknown	FCBGA1338
Core name	Cannon Lake	Jasper Lake
Architecture	x86	x86
Generation	8	7
Turbo Frequency	3.2 MHz	3.2 MHz
Frequency	2.2 MHz	1.1 MHz
Cores	2	4
Threads	4	4
Bus rate	4 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	10 nm	10 nm
Transistors count	1800 millions	1400 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	15 W	6 W
Memory type	DDR4-2400, LPDDR4/x-2400	DDR4 LPDDR4x
Max. Memory	32 Gb	16 Gb
Memory Frequency
Memory bandwidth	37.5 GB/s
L1 cache
L2 cache
L3 cache	4 MB	4 MB
Overclocking	No	No
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Core i3-8121U is 50% better than Pentium Silver N6000 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Pentium Silver N6000 has 2 more core than Core i3-8121U. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption (relevant for laptops).

Result:
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i3-8121U is better: 13
The number of parameters for which Intel Pentium Silver N6000 is better: 7
However, it should be realized that all the figures that you have looked at here do not mean that taking them into account you should entirely trust a simple comparison of these numbers. Better to watch the testing video and read the opinion of real owners of Intel Core i3-8121U and Intel Pentium Silver N6000 before making a decision which of the processors to buy for gaming.

Intel Core i3-8121U - all data

• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• Intel Core i3-8121U specs and review.

Intel Pentium Silver N6000 - all data

• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• Intel Pentium Silver N6000 specs and review.