Intel Core i5-8257U vs Intel Core i7-4790

Processor comparisons   18-01-2022
   Perhaps you can't decide which CPU to buy, you can make a choice after reading the comprehensive tests Intel Core i5-8257U vs Intel Core i7-4790 and understand which is better for games or normal use for video editing, machine learning, rendering, streaming, programming. Here is all information from real streaming and video editing tests or many benchmarks. A careful review of all the specifications, so that it can be easier to read, is summarized in the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in software tests like AIDA64, Prime95, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Furmark, PCMark 10, 3DMark, PassMark, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, Blender, 7zip, Gears 5, MATLAB, SuperPi, VeraCrypt, RealBench, Handbrake, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Dolphin Emulator, Blender, WPrime, GeekBench 6, 5.2, UserBenchmark.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

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

After looking at the data these benchmarks and videos, you can already make an briefed decision about which processor is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i7-4790 or Intel Core i5-8257U.

Summary benchmark results

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

Core i5-8257U

52%

Core i7-4790

52%

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Core i5-8257U

52%

Core i7-4790

52%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor currently available. And of course, this is a server processor, on which no one will play 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 low game result, look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the final table below.
List of other games in which processors were compared: PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Half-Life: Alyx, Monster Hunter World, Ghostrunner, NBA 2K20, League of Legends (LOL), Forza Horizon 4, DOTA 2A, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Battlefield V, Microsoft Flight Simulator, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Hitman 3, Metro Exodus, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Control, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Horizon Zero Dawn.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	92.0	92.1
Valorant	104.6	104.7
Cyberpunk 2077	58.6	58.6
Apex Legends	98.3	98.4
Call of Duty Warzone	78.4	78.5
Overwatch	84.7	84.8
Red Dead Redemption 2	72.2	72.2
DOOM Eternal	52.3	52.3
Warzone	81.6	81.6
Assassin's Creed	87.8	87.9
Valheim	86.8	86.9

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: 2K, FullHD or 4K. So the game benchmark data is approximate. But all video cards met the average system requirements of games. To be sure exactly how much performance 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 i5-8257U

235%

Core i7-4790

31%

To make a final decision 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 Core i5-8257U is more energy efficient than the Core i7-4790 since it has less power consumption: 15W vs. 84W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, you need to know its TDP. 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

If you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for programming, machine learning, video editing or video rendering, streaming, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to achieve maximum performance, the CPU includes all threads and cores that it has. You will find out this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using the data from these tests, be sure to check whether the software you are going to use on your computer supports multi-threaded mode. Since there are still many programs that 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 i5-8257U	Intel Core i7-4790
Cinbench 15 Single-core	159	145
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	667	728
Cinbench 20 Single-core	391	384
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	1628	1819
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1054	974
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	4128	4564

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

	Intel Core i5-8257U	Intel Core i7-4790
Single-Core	2350	2247
Multi-Core	7832	7177

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

	Intel Core i5-8257U	Intel Core i7-4790
Single-Core	1061	785
Multi-Core	3939	4018

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most useful will be the the possibility of overclocking it and release date of the processor. The later the processor is released, 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, increasing its performance, then it will still be able to produce maximum FPS even in new games. It turns out that there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The savings are obvious!

	Intel Core i5-8257U	Intel Core i7-4790
Announcement date	November 07, 2019	April 01, 2014
Type	Laptop	Desktop
Socket	FCBGA1528	FCLGA1150
Core name	Coffee Lake	Haswell
Architecture	x86	x86
Generation	8	4
Turbo Frequency	3.9 MHz	4 MHz
Frequency	1.4 MHz	3.6 MHz
Cores	4	4
Threads	8	8
Bus rate	4 GT/s	5 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	14 nm	22 nm
Transistors count	1900 millions	1480 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	15 W	84 W
Memory type	DDR4-2400, LPDDR3-2133	DDR3-1333/1600, DDR3L-1333/1600 @ 1.5V
Max. Memory	32 Gb	32 Gb
Memory Frequency
Memory bandwidth	37.5 GB/s	25.6 GB/s
L1 cache
L2 cache
L3 cache	6 MB	8 MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
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 i7-4790 is 61% better than Core i5-8257U in terms of CPU frequency. 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 i5-8257U is better: 12
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i7-4790 is better: 16
Although it should be understood that all the figures in the article above do not mean that taking them into account you should totally trust a simple quantitative comparison. Better to watch benchmarks video and read the opinion of of people who bought Intel Core i5-8257U and Intel Core i7-4790 before making a selection which of the CPUs to buy for gaming.

Intel Core i5-8257U - all data

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

• Intel Core i5-8257U specs and review.

• Intel Core i7-4790 specs and review.