During 2011, Intel released their 2nd generation of their Intel Core processors under the Sandy Bridge micro-architecture. While the technology was new, the naming conventions remained the same. While old Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 processors left the shelves to be placed in budget desktop models, the rest of the world kept going and people in general still do not know what the difference is between an Intel Core i5 and an Intel Core i7 processor.
Same socket, different chipsets
The fact is, both the Sandy Bridge Intel Core i5 and Core i7 processors use the same LGA 1155 socket. Both processors feature integrated graphics and both have K-unlocked versions that allow for massive overclocking. Both use the same type of DDR3 dual-channel memory. However, there are different chipsets for both these processors, namely the H67 chipset and the P67 chipset. The H67 chipset features onboard graphic display ports such as a HDMI port, VGA port and DVI port. The P67 chipset does not have these ports and is meant to be used with a graphic card. On the other hand, a H67 chipset motherboard can still use a more powerful graphic card.
The processors are interchangeable so you can switch out the Intel Core i5 on your H67 chipset motherboard with your Intel Core i7 processor or do the same with your Intel Core i7 and an Intel Core i5 with a P67 chipset motherboard. The only difference here is that when you switch the Intel Core i5 over to the P67, the integrated graphics in the Intel Core i5 will be turned off.
Performance
The Intel Core i5 is designed for the mainstream to midrange user, which is IT talk for the normal everyday guy and gamer. The Intel Core i7 on the other hand is made for the upper midrange to performance user, which usually means the more hardcore gamer, programmer or 3D renderer. Without a doubt the Intel Core i7 is more powerful than the Intel Core i5. It will outprocess the Intel Core i5 each and every time, especially for situations which require multi-tasking such as 3D rendering or video editing.
Overclocking
Both the Intel Core i5 and Intel Core i7 have K-unlocked versions that are designed for overclocking. This is the only way the Intel Core i5 can ever beat the Intel Core i7 as it can be overclocked to a much higher speed than the K-unlocked version of the Intel Core i7. In my experience, this means you can push the Intel Core i5 K-unlocked version all the way up to 5GHz on normal air cooling. Any higher than this will require more extreme cooling such as liquid cooling or liquid nitrogen. A K-unlocked Intel Core i7 can only reach about 4.5GHz on air cooling. But, the overclocked 4.5GHz Intel Core i7 is a lot more stable than the overclocked 5GHz Intel Core i5. Since it is a higher performing processor the overclocked 4.5GHz Intel Core i7 also outperforms the overclocked 5GHz Intel Core i5.
Upgrade Path
This makes for a very interesting upgrade path. Say you start out with a H67 chipset motherboard and a dual-core Intel Core i5 processor with integrated graphics. At this point you can do some light gaming, watch full HD 1080p and do all your office work. As you progress, you find that you want to play the latest games, so you have a choice, you can get a quad-core Intel Core i5 or Intel Core i7 with an entry-level graphic card. As you keep going you find that there are some games which your system cannot play on maximum settings. At this point, you can shift to a new motherboard with a P67 chipset using the same Intel Core i5 or i7 and graphic card. This will increase performance somewhat, but you may also have to get a midrange graphic card. At this point you can pretty much play everything on maximum settings. Now you can comfortably do everything, including programming, 3D rendering and so forth with ease. However you have now fallen in love with overclocking. At this point you can get a better chipset motherboard and continue upwards or make the shift to Sandy Bridge-E. This gradual process of upgrading is more affordable in the long run and lets your computer grow at the same time as you and your needs grow. Recent additions to chipsets and processors using Intel’s Ivy Bridge chipsets (H77, Z75 and Z77) let you extend that upgrade path very high and should be more than enough for most people. The Sandy Bridge-E is for the really fanatical performance user and is very expensive but making the shift earlier might be better in the long run.
The Sandy Bridge-E
The Sandy Bridge-E is an extension of the Sandy Bridge micro-architecture, which is what the “E” stands for. Under this extension Intel released several Intel Core i7 Extreme processor and an Intel X79 chipset. The chipset and processors use an entirely different socket called the LGA 2011 socket. It also uses quad-channel memory, so you need 8 special quad-channel pieces of DDR3 memory to make it run. So far, tests have shown the performance increase over its closest Sandy Bridge Intel Core i7 processor and chipset to just be about a third more, but for those looking to reach the highest overclocking score in the world, this is the Intel board and processor to choose. As you can expect, getting all new processors, motherboards and memory makes Sandy Bridge-E very expensive.
