Intel Core i5-8500 vs Intel Core i7-2600

The Intel Core i5-8500 (Coffee Lake S, approx. 2018) was manufactured in 14 nm and offers 6 cores and 6 threads.

It features 9 MB Level 3 Cache, 43 GB/s maximum memory bandwidth, and supports PCIe 3.0. Its integrated Intel UHD Graphics 630 was aimed at the mainstream desktop market. In performance tests, it significantly outperforms the Intel Core i7-2600 in single-core and multi-core performance and offers clear advantages in games due to its more modern architecture and higher IPC.

With a TDP of 65 watts, it is more energy-efficient. On the used market, it represents a better price-performance ratio for a more powerful and modern platform, ideal for office work and gaming. The Intel Core i7-2600 (Sandy Bridge S, approx. 2011) was manufactured using the 32 nm process and has 4 cores and 8 threads thanks to Hyper-Threading.

It offers 1 MB Level 2 and 8 MB Level 3 Cache, 17 GB/s maximum memory bandwidth, and supports PCIe 2.0. Its integrated Intel HD Graphics 2000 was intended for more demanding applications of its time. In benchmarks, its performance in single-core and multi-core scenarios is significantly lower than that of the Intel Core i5-8500, including in games.

With a TDP of 95 watts, it is less energy-efficient. It is an option for very budget-conscious upgrades of older systems with low performance requirements.