Intel Core i5 2500k Review & BenchMarks
Intel core i5 family is known for the best performance for money but without HT, means 4 Cores / 4 Threads so Sandy bridge, i5 2500k is beeing used mostly in mid level gamer zone.
Part of Intel's family of 2nd generation Intel Core computer processors, the Intel Core i5-2500K Processor delivers speed and smooth performance --whether you're uploading and editing home videos or checking your e-mail. This quad-core processor runs at 3.30 GHz and uses the LGA1155 socket. It features a 6 MB L3 cache, Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0, and Virtualization Technology to improve speed and computing productivity. It's also fully unlocked for extra performance and flexibility. Built-in visual technologies, like Clear Video and InTru3D, support high-definition and Blu-ray playback.
Both are built on the same foundation but offer different performance levels. Intel HD Graphics 3000 offers 12 execution units (think "shaders"), whereas HD Graphics 2000 comes with only 6 of them. This means that essentially HD Graphics 3000 is twice as fast as HD Graphics 2000 when it comes to 3D applications.
Compared to the previous generation graphics cores, Intel has added substantial improvements to performance and features.
Accelerated video encoding. This will be useful if you transcode videos, to carry them on your mobile device for example. Instead of using the CPU or GPU shaders, Intel has given their new IGP dedicated hardware for MPEG2, VC1 and AVC encode and decode. The decoder units have also been improved compared to previous generations, but the real-life difference will be negligible.
Video Processing Accelerators. ATI and NVIDIA are offering extensive quality controls to adjust the experience of video playback to your likings with features like denoise, de-interlace, filtering and color correction. Intel has now added these features too in their graphics chip.
4x Anti-Aliasing. Intel now supports up to 4x AA on their graphics core which means that if you play older titles that do not require a lot of graphics processing power, you can enable Anti-Aliasing to improve the visual quality of the games.
Support for DirectX 10.1. Yes, no DirectX 11 support. But given the limited power under the hood of Intel HD Graphics 2000 / 3000 this should not be too much of an issue.
Support for HDMI 1.4. This means that you can now play 3D Blu-ray content - if you have a player software, the movies and the proper output device configuration. This 3D movie stuff is still very new and there will likely be several technological changes before it becomes mainstream. Nevertheless it is a nice added feature.
Intel has extended their Turbo Boost clock scheme to include the graphics processor now. So when the CPU is lightly loaded, or not all cores are loaded, the graphics engine will be automagically bumped up in clock frequency up to 1100-1300 MHz depending on the CPU model. Intel's new Sandy Bridge CPUs all come with overclocking locked down pretty tight, except for the K models where the multipliers are unlocked, for the graphics core there is no difference, all models have unlocked graphics clocks.
Current Prize $219.9 (Intel i5 2500k-BX80623I52500K).
Part of Intel's family of 2nd generation Intel Core computer processors, the Intel Core i5-2500K Processor delivers speed and smooth performance --whether you're uploading and editing home videos or checking your e-mail. This quad-core processor runs at 3.30 GHz and uses the LGA1155 socket. It features a 6 MB L3 cache, Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0, and Virtualization Technology to improve speed and computing productivity. It's also fully unlocked for extra performance and flexibility. Built-in visual technologies, like Clear Video and InTru3D, support high-definition and Blu-ray playback.
Both are built on the same foundation but offer different performance levels. Intel HD Graphics 3000 offers 12 execution units (think "shaders"), whereas HD Graphics 2000 comes with only 6 of them. This means that essentially HD Graphics 3000 is twice as fast as HD Graphics 2000 when it comes to 3D applications.
Compared to the previous generation graphics cores, Intel has added substantial improvements to performance and features.
Accelerated video encoding. This will be useful if you transcode videos, to carry them on your mobile device for example. Instead of using the CPU or GPU shaders, Intel has given their new IGP dedicated hardware for MPEG2, VC1 and AVC encode and decode. The decoder units have also been improved compared to previous generations, but the real-life difference will be negligible.
Video Processing Accelerators. ATI and NVIDIA are offering extensive quality controls to adjust the experience of video playback to your likings with features like denoise, de-interlace, filtering and color correction. Intel has now added these features too in their graphics chip.
4x Anti-Aliasing. Intel now supports up to 4x AA on their graphics core which means that if you play older titles that do not require a lot of graphics processing power, you can enable Anti-Aliasing to improve the visual quality of the games.
Support for DirectX 10.1. Yes, no DirectX 11 support. But given the limited power under the hood of Intel HD Graphics 2000 / 3000 this should not be too much of an issue.
Support for HDMI 1.4. This means that you can now play 3D Blu-ray content - if you have a player software, the movies and the proper output device configuration. This 3D movie stuff is still very new and there will likely be several technological changes before it becomes mainstream. Nevertheless it is a nice added feature.
Intel has extended their Turbo Boost clock scheme to include the graphics processor now. So when the CPU is lightly loaded, or not all cores are loaded, the graphics engine will be automagically bumped up in clock frequency up to 1100-1300 MHz depending on the CPU model. Intel's new Sandy Bridge CPUs all come with overclocking locked down pretty tight, except for the K models where the multipliers are unlocked, for the graphics core there is no difference, all models have unlocked graphics clocks.
Current Prize $219.9 (Intel i5 2500k-BX80623I52500K).
- Strong overall computing performance for the price.
- Good media-processing capabilities.
- Unlocked multiplier for simplified overclocking.
- No Hyper Threading Support.
- On chip HD Graphics 3000 lack much.
- No DX11 Support.
