The Intel Core i5-10400F processor was first released by Intel on April 30, 2020. It is the direct successor to the Core i5-9400F processor and is considered a mid-range processor. In this article, we will reveal its specifications and conduct various tests and benchmarks. The Intel Core i5-10400F processor was sold with a suggested retail price (MSRP) of $155. Currently, it is available on Amazon for €171.79. You may still be able to find it at a better price.
Introducing the Intel Core i5-10400F processor
The Intel Core i5-10400F processor is part of Intel's 10th generation . It is based on the Comet Lake . This processor was initially designed for desktop PCs. It features 6 cores and 12 threads , double the number of threads compared to the previous generation Intel Core i5-9400F. In boost clock mode, this processor reaches a base clock speed of 4.3 GHz . The Intel Core i5-10400F is locked, meaning it cannot be overclocked using the base clock multiplier. Under normal operating conditions, the processor's transistors run at 2.9 GHz. In comparison, the FX-9590 has a base clock speed of 4.7 GHz. The Intel Core i5-10400F CPU has a TDP of 65 watts.
This processor supports PCIe 3.0 with 16 lanes . PCIe 4.0 technology is only supported with Rocket Lake processors. This processor does not include an integrated graphics processor. The F version does not have one. Note that the Intel Core i5-10400 processor features the Intel UHD Graphics 630 iGPU. Therefore, you will need to add a dedicated graphics card to your PC. This processor is quite fast, as it roughly matches the gaming performance of a Core i7-8700K. Its performance is approximately 30% higher than the previous generation of CPUs.
Advanced features of the Intel Core i5-10400F processor
14-nanometer process . It connects to the motherboard via the FCLGA1200 socket. Therefore, it requires a 400-series chipset (H470, H410, B460, or Z490). The maximum supported case temperature is 72°C DDR4-2666 memory with a maximum capacity of 128MB across two channels and a bandwidth of 41.6Gbps. For comparison, the Xeon E5-2670 v3 processor can manage up to 786 GB of memory. The Intel Core i5-10400F CPU has three memory caches: a 64 KB L1 cache per core, a 256 KB L2 cache per core, and a total of 12 MB L3 cache across its six cores. Regarding extended instructions, it supports Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, and Intel® AVX2.
Turbo Boost 2.0 technology . Therefore, it does not have Turbo Boost 3.0, which is designed for Core i7 processors. It also does not benefit from Thermal Velocity Boost technology, which is reserved for Core i9 processors. The Intel Core i5-10400F supports hyper-threading, idle states, and thermal monitoring. Regarding integrated security technologies, it includes TXT, EDB, Secure Key, Identity Protection, SGX Yes with Intel® ME, and OS Guard. For virtualization, the Intel Core i5-10400F is compatible with AMD-V, VT-d/VT-x, and EPT.
Benchmarking of the Intel Core i5-10400F processor
The Intel Core i5-10400F processor is 14.68% faster than the AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3995WX, the leading gaming processor. This processor is ranked 278th in our overall performance ranking. In terms of value for money, on a scale of 0 to 100, it scores 0.6.
Compared to similar processors, the Intel Core i5-10400F CPU outperforms the Ryzen 5 3500 (98.30%), the Core i7-5960X (97.34%), and the Core i7-7800X (96.93%). However, it performs less well than the Ryzen 5 2600 (101.43%), the Core i7-8700 (100.61%), and the Ryzen 5 1600X (100.41%).
On CPU Mark, the Intel Core i5-10400F processor scored 12,582. We compared it with 10 other commonly used processors for office applications. It outperforms the Intel Core i7-4790K @ 4.00GHz (CPU Mark score 8,058) and the Intel Core i7-3770 @ 3.40GHz (CPU Mark score 6,361). The following processors are, however, more efficient: AMD Ryzen 9 3900X (CPU score Mark 32863), AMD Ryzen 7 3700X (CPU score Mark 22815), Intel Core i9-9900K @ 3.60GHz (CPU score Mark 18873), AMD Ryzen 5 3600X (CPU score Mark 18333), AMD Ryzen 5 3600 (CPU Mark score 17859), Intel Core i7-9700K @ 3.60GHz (CPU Mark score 14607), Intel Core i7-8700K @ 3.70GHz (CPU Mark score 13908), AMD Ryzen 5 2600 (CPU Mark score 13207).
When comparing the Intel Core i5-10400F processor in terms of price-performance ratio, our processor performs very well. It ranks second with a ratio of 81.18. Only the AMD Ryzen 5 2600 manages to surpass it with a ratio of 94.34.
Let's now test our Intel Core i5-10400F processor on 3DMark. It has a 3DMark score of
7049. Let's compare this processor to those with a similar MSRP price. It performs better than the AMD Ryzen 5 3600, which has a 3DMark score of 7040. However, it is slower than the following processors: AMD Ryzen 9 3900X (3DMark score 12213), Intel Core i9-9900K Processor (3DMark score 10958), AMD Ryzen 7 3700X (3DMark score 9673), Intel Core i7-9700K Processor (3DMark score 8063), Intel Core i7-8700K Processor (3DMark score 7912).
When comparing the Intel Core i5-10400F processor in 3DMark with similarly performing processors, it outperforms the Intel Core i5-10400 Processor (3DMark score 7036 with an MSRP of $182) and the AMD Ryzen 5 3600 (3DMark score 7040 with an MSRP of $199). However, the following processors perform better: the AMD Ryzen 5 3600X (3DMark score 7154 with an MSRP of $249) and the Intel Core i7-9700 Processor (3DMark score 7203 with an initial price of $323).
In short, the Intel Core i5-10400F is a fairly fast mid-range processor. It can be used for both office work and gaming. Although it doesn't have integrated graphics, you can equip your PC with a high-performance graphics card to fully utilize its capabilities. This processor offers good value for money according to various benchmarks. Buying the Intel Core i5-10400F is therefore a good deal. It was launched with an MSRP of $155. Currently, you can get it on Amazon for €171.79. The price is slightly higher elsewhere.
