Intel Core i5-10210Y vs Intel Core i3-8121U

Processor comparisons 18-01-2022

   If there are difficulties with the choice of a processor, you will solve them by reading the comprehensive tests Intel Core i5-10210Y vs Intel Core i3-8121U and decide which is better for games or simple use for rendering, streaming, video editing, programming, machine learning. Here is useful information from various benchmarks or real streaming and video editing tests. A step-by-step analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to understand, is summarized in the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in software tests like Gears 5, Dolphin Emulator, Prime95, MATLAB, Furmark, 3DMark, WPrime, VeraCrypt, GeekBench 6, 5.2, Handbrake, PCMark 10, RealBench, AIDA64, SuperPi, Blender, Blender, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), PassMark, 7zip, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, DaVinci Resolve Studio, UserBenchmark.
   And how good the CPUs are in games:

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

After reading the results these benchmarks and videos, you can already make an briefed decision about which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i3-8121U or Intel Core i5-10210Y.

Summary benchmark results

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

Core i5-10210Y

51%

Core i3-8121U

51%

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Core i5-10210Y

51%

Core i3-8121U

51%

For the maximum in this test, the results of the most powerful processor in the site database are taken. And it is clear that 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. And if it seems to you that the selected CPU has a small game result, look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the final table below.
List of other games in which CPU comparisons were performed: Shadow of the Tomb Raider, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Ghostrunner, DOTA 2A, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Control, Half-Life: Alyx, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Horizon Zero Dawn, NBA 2K20, Forza Horizon 4, Monster Hunter World, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Metro Exodus, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Hitman 3, League of Legends (LOL), Battlefield V.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	90.9	90.1
Valorant	103.3	102.4
Cyberpunk 2077	57.9	57.3
Apex Legends	97.1	96.2
Call of Duty Warzone	77.5	76.8
Overwatch	83.7	82.9
Red Dead Redemption 2	71.3	70.6
DOOM Eternal	51.7	51.2
Warzone	80.6	79.9
Assassin's Creed	86.8	86.0
Valheim	85.7	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 computers participating in the comparing not only were the equipped with different amounts of RAM and different video cards. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 4K, 2K or FullHD. Therefore, 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 get acquainted with the benchmarks that are made with the same video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

Core i5-10210Y

499%

Core i3-8121U

200%

To make a finishing resolution on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. The newer the processor generation, the better its performance in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the Core i5-10210Y is more energy efficient than the Core i3-8121U as it consumes less power: 7W vs. 15W. Power consumption is particularly important for laptops. And TDP should be taken into account when choosing a processor cooling system. It is necessary to count so that the TDP data specified in the cooler specification is greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

Let's say you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for video rendering or video editing, programming, machine learning, streaming, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, the CPU uses all threads and cores that it has to the maximum to achieve maximum efficiency. You will learn this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using the data from these tests, be sure to find out whether 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 benefit of multi-core mode turns out to be unnecessary.

Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	Intel Core i5-10210Y	Intel Core i3-8121U
Cinbench 15 Single-core	137	139
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	520	305
Cinbench 20 Single-core	277	340
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	1040	598
Cinbench 23 Single-core	758	563
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	2713	2184

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

	Intel Core i5-10210Y	Intel Core i3-8121U
Single-Core	2086	1939
Multi-Core	4932	4369

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

	Intel Core i5-10210Y	Intel Core i3-8121U
Single-Core	1049	901
Multi-Core	2853	2063

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the processor release date and overclocking capability will be the most helpful. 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. When the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS even in the newest games. The savings are obvious! Accordingly, you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Intel Core i5-10210Y	Intel Core i3-8121U
Announcement date	January 01, 2020	July 07, 2018
Type	Laptop	Laptop
Socket	UTFCBGA1377	Unknown
Core name	Amber Lake Y	Cannon Lake
Architecture	x86	x86
Generation	10	8
Turbo Frequency	4 MHz	3.2 MHz
Frequency	1 MHz	2.2 MHz
Cores	4	2
Threads	8	4
Bus rate	4 GT/s	4 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	14 nm	10 nm
Transistors count	4800 millions	1800 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	7 W	15 W
Memory type	LPDDR3-2133, DDR3L-1600	DDR4-2400, LPDDR4/x-2400
Max. Memory	16 Gb	32 Gb
Memory Frequency
Memory bandwidth	33.33 GB/s	37.5 GB/s
L1 cache
L2 cache
L3 cache	6 MB	4 MB
Overclocking	No	No
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	Expansion Options

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here Core i3-8121U is 54% better than Core i5-10210Y in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Core i5-10210Y 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 i5-10210Y is better: 27
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i3-8121U is better: 6
Although it should be realized that the summary data in the article above do not mean that taking them into account you should totally trust a simple quantitative comparison. Be sure to watch the testing video and read the opinion of real owners of Intel Core i5-10210Y and Intel Core i3-8121U before deciding which of the CPUs to buy for gaming.

Intel Core i5-10210Y - all data

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

• Intel Core i5-10210Y specs and review.

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.