Intel Core i3-8121U vs Intel Core i5-7260U

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Intel Core i3-8121U CPU1 vs CPU2 Intel Core i5-7260U
Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i5-7260U

CPU comparison

In this CPU comparison, we compare the Intel Core i3-8121U and the Intel Core i5-7260U and use benchmarks to check which processor is faster.

We compare the Intel Core i3-8121U 2 core processor released in Q2/2018 with the Intel Core i5-7260U which has 2 CPU cores and was introduced in Q4/2016.
Intel Core i3 (205) Family Intel Core i5 (331)
Intel Core i 8000U (CL) (1) CPU group Intel Core i 7000U (18)
8 Generation 7
Cannon Lake U Architecture Kaby Lake U
Mobile Segment Mobile
-- Predecessor Intel Core i5-6260U
-- Successor Intel Core i5-8260U

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Intel Core i3-8121U is a 2 core processor with a clock frequency of 2.20 GHz (3.20 GHz). The processor can compute 4 threads at the same time. The Intel Core i5-7260U clocks with 2.20 GHz (3.40 GHz), has 2 CPU cores and can calculate 4 threads in parallel.

Intel Core i3-8121U Characteristic Intel Core i5-7260U
2 Cores 2
4 Threads 4
normal Core architecture normal
Yes Hyperthreading Yes
No Overclocking ? No
2.20 GHz Frequency 2.20 GHz
3.20 GHz Turbo Frequency (1 Core) 3.40 GHz
2.70 GHz Turbo Frequency (All Cores) 3.40 GHz

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. Algorithms for ML improve their performance the more data they have collected via software. ML tasks can be processed up to 10,000 times faster than with a classic processor.

Intel Core i3-8121U Characteristic Intel Core i5-7260U
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

Graphics (iGPU) integrated into the processor not only enable image output without having to rely on a dedicated graphics solution, but can also efficiently accelerate video playback.

no iGPU GPU Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640
GPU frequency 0.30 GHz
-- GPU (Turbo) 0.95 GHz
-- GPU Generation 9.5
Technology 14 nm
Max. displays 3
-- Compute units 48
-- Shader 384
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
-- Max. GPU Memory 32 GB
-- DirectX Version 12

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.

no iGPU GPU Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640
No Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
No Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) Decode / Encode
No Codec h264 Decode / Encode
No Codec VP9 Decode / Encode
No Codec VP8 Decode / Encode
No Codec AV1 No
No Codec AVC Decode / Encode
No Codec VC-1 Decode
No Codec JPEG Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

Up to 32 GB of memory in a maximum of 2 memory channels is supported by the Intel Core i3-8121U, while the Intel Core i5-7260U supports a maximum of 32 GB of memory with a maximum memory bandwidth of 34.1 GB/s enabled.

Intel Core i3-8121U Characteristic Intel Core i5-7260U
LPDDR4-2400, DDR4-2400 Memory DDR4-2133
32 GB Max. Memory 32 GB
2 (Dual Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
38.4 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 34.1 GB/s
No ECC No
-- L2 Cache --
4.00 MB L3 Cache 3.00 MB
3.0 PCIe version 3.0
16 PCIe lanes 12
15.8 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth 11.8 GB/s

Thermal Management

The Intel Core i3-8121U has a TDP of 15 W. The TDP of the Intel Core i5-7260U is 15 W. System integrators use the TDP of the processor as a guide when dimensioning the cooling solution.

Intel Core i3-8121U Characteristic Intel Core i5-7260U
15 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 15 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
105 °C Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Intel Core i3-8121U has 4.00 MB cache and is manufactured in 10 nm. The cache of Intel Core i5-7260U is at 3.00 MB. The processor is manufactured in 14 nm.

Intel Core i3-8121U Characteristic Intel Core i5-7260U
10 nm Technology 14 nm
Monolithic Chip design Monolithic
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2, AVX-512 ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2
BGA 1356 Socket BGA 1356
VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d
Yes AES-NI Yes
Windows 10, Windows 11, Linux Operating systems Windows 10, Linux
Q2/2018 Release date Q4/2016
-- Release price --
show more data show more data


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Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 3 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core i3-8121U (93%)
Intel Core i5-7260U (100%)
⌀ Multi core performance in 4 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core i3-8121U (95%)
Intel Core i5-7260U (98%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i3-8121U
2C 4T @ 3.20 GHz
810 (89%)
Intel Core i5-7260U Intel Core i5-7260U
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
906 (100%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i3-8121U
2C 4T @ 2.70 GHz
1987 (99%)
Intel Core i5-7260U Intel Core i5-7260U
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
2016 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The single-core benchmark only evaluates the performance of the fastest CPU core, the number of CPU cores in a processor is irrelevant here.
Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i3-8121U
2C 4T @ 3.20 GHz
1114 (93%)
Intel Core i5-7260U Intel Core i5-7260U
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
1192 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The multi-core benchmark evaluates the performance of all of the processor's CPU cores. Virtual thread improvements such as AMD SMT or Intel's Hyper-Threading have a positive impact on the benchmark result.
Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i3-8121U
2C 4T @ 2.70 GHz
2414 (96%)
Intel Core i5-7260U Intel Core i5-7260U
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
2503 (100%)

Estimated results for PassMark CPU Mark

Some of the CPUs listed below have been benchmarked by CPU-monkey. However the majority of CPUs have not been tested and the results have been estimated by a CPU-monkey’s secret proprietary formula. As such they do not accurately reflect the actual Passmark CPU mark values and are not endorsed by PassMark Software Pty Ltd.
Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i3-8121U
2C 4T @ 2.70 GHz
4395 (100%)
Intel Core i5-7260U Intel Core i5-7260U
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
3944 (90%)

Cinebench R15 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i3-8121U
2C 4T @ 3.20 GHz
139 (97%)
Intel Core i5-7260U Intel Core i5-7260U
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
144 (100%)

Cinebench R15 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i3-8121U
2C 4T @ 2.70 GHz
305 (84%)
Intel Core i5-7260U Intel Core i5-7260U
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
362 (100%)

iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)

The theoretical computing performance of the internal graphics unit of the processor with simple accuracy (32 bit) in GFLOPS. GFLOPS indicates how many billion floating point operations the iGPU can perform per second.
Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i3-8121U
@ 0.00 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i5-7260U Intel Core i5-7260U
Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640 @ 0.95 GHz
730 (100%)

Devices using this processor

Intel Core i3-8121U Intel Core i5-7260U
Unknown Unknown

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