Right after AMD‘s new Ryzen 7000 Zen4 processors and X670(E) motherboards went on sale, Intel fought back by announcing its latest 13th Gen Intel Core Raptor Lake processors and the new Z790 chipset series motherboards. But unlike AMD’s new CPUs and motherboards, Intel’s CPUs are currently up for pre-order only, with a release date of October 20th. Intel showed some performance benchmarks of its latest flagship Core i9-13900K, but they only compared it to AMD’s previous generation Ryzen 9 5950X. However, since we already saw reviews for AMD Ryzen 7000 CPUs, we somehow have a rough idea of how both the Zen 4 and Raptor Lake CPUs would fare each other.
13th Gen Intel Core CPUs vs AMD Ryzen 7000 CPUs
Intel’s latest 13th gen Intel Core Raptor Lake processors can be considered as a refinement of its previous 12th gen Alder Lake CPUs. These 13th gen CPUs are backward compatible with the Z690 motherboards. And if I am not mistaken, you can also use a 12th gen Intel Core CPU on the new Z790 motherboard.
Unlike in AMD’s case, they had to switch from PGA to LGA socket type. This means, gone are the pins on the CPUs, and they are now on the motherboard; similar to Intel’s CPUs and motherboards. Also, the Ryzen 7000 CPUs are definitely not backward compatible with the previous generation. The Ryzen 7000 CPUs and X670(E) motherboards are completely different platforms.
However, unlike Intel’s current lineup, AMD’s new platform is limited to DDR5 memory support only. With Intel’s 13th gen and 700 series chipset, it still supports DDR4 memory. But expect that Z790 motherboards that have DDR4 memory support are usually the lower to mid-tier motherboards. All high-end Z790 motherboards use DDR5 memory.
There’s not a huge difference between the 13th-gen and 12th-gen CPUs. It’s not a generational leap. However, the 13th gen CPUs do offer several improvements from its predecessor. One improvement is that the new 13th gen Intel Core processors now have more cores and more threads, and a bump on their clock speeds.
For example, the Core i9-13900K has 24 cores and can boost up to 5.8GHz. Intel added 8 cores and 8 threads, and 600MHz of Turbo to the Core i9. Meanwhile, the Core i7 gets 4 cores, 4 threads, and 400MHz of boost. And finally, the Core i5 gets 4 cores, and 4 threads, but only 200MHz of turbo boost.
Below is a specs comparison table of the AMD Ryzen 7000 CPUs vs Intel’s 13th Gen Core CPUs.
Specs and Price Comparison
| CPU | Cores | Threads | Base Clock | Boost Clock | iGPU | TDP | Memory Support | Price (Launch) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryzen 9 7950X | 16 | 32 | 4.5 GHz | 5.7 GHz | Radeon 2 Cores | 170 W | DDR5 | 699 |
| Core i9-13900K | 24 (8P+16E) | 32 | 3.0 GHz P-core | 5.8GHz P-core | UHD 770 | 125 W | DDR5 / DDR4 | 660 |
| Core i9-13900KF | 24 (8P+16E) | 32 | 3.0 GHz P-core | 5.8GHz P-core | None | 125 W | DDR5 / DDR4 | 630 |
| Ryzen 9 7900X | 12 | 24 | 4.7 GHz | 5.6 GHz | Radeon 2 Cores | 170 W | DDR5 | 549 |
| Core i7-13700K | 16 (8P+8E) | 24 | 3.4GHz P-core | 5.4GHz P-core | UHD 770 | 125 W | DDR5 / DDR4 | 450 |
| Core i7-13700KF | 16 (8P+8E) | 24 | 3.4GHz P-core | 5.4GHz P-core | None | 125 W | DDR5 / DDR4 | 430 |
| Ryzen 7 7700X | 8 | 16 | 4.5 GHz | 5.4 GHz | Radeon 2 Cores | 105 W | DDR5 | 399 |
| Core i5-13600K | 14 (6P+8E) | 20 | 3.5GHz P-core | 5.1GHz P-core | UHD 770 | 125 W | DDR5 / DDR4 | 330 |
| Core i5-13600KF | 14 (6P+8E) | 20 | 3.5GHz P-core | 5.1GHz P-core | None | 125 W | DDR5 / DDR4 | 310 |
| Ryzen 5 7600X | 6 | 12 | 4.7 GHz | 5.3 GHz | Radeon 2 Cores | 105 W | DDR5 | 299 |
UPDATE: Check the latest pricing and availability: (#ad)
13th Gen Intel Core CPUs are available on Amazon.com here or Newegg.com here.
AMD Ryzen 7000 Zen 4 CPUs are now available on Amazon.com here or Newegg.com here.
Based on the table above, it looks like Intel’s offerings are quite cheaper compared to AMD’s. Not to mention, Intel’s new CPUs still support DDR4 memory, which is currently cheaper than DDR5 memory kits. This brings the total system cost lower.
However, I think the main deciding factor here would the performance. If Intel can somehow outperform AMD’s Ryzen 7000 CPUs in gaming and productivity workload, it could convince people to choose team blue.
We won’t be seeing reviews until October 20th though. We’ll have to wait until then. For now, Intel shared some benchmark results based on their internal testing.
Reviews Are Out! Intel Core i9-13900K New Fastest Gaming CPU!
Reviews for the 13th Gen Intel Core i9-13900K and Core i5-13600K are finally live. Like before, Intel only sampled the Core i9 and Core i5 CPUs. Intel’s reviewer’s kit didn’t include the Core i7-13700K CPU. Based on TechPowerUP’s review of the Core i9-13900K, the said CPU is generally faster than any of AMD’s latest Ryzen 7000 Zen4 CPUs.
However, at what cost? How did Intel manage to beat AMD in gaming?
Intel Core i9-13900K is Power Hungy!
Based on TechSpot’s testing, we also see the Core i9-13900K on the top of the 12-game average chart. However, it is best to pair these new CPUs with a faster DDR5 memory kit for the best results. TechSpot’s review also revealed that the Core i9-13900K is very power-hungry. It could consume almost 500W of system power in the Blender test alone. Most of the power draw came from the CPU alone. Meanwhile, other reviewers, like Gamers Nexus, showed that it could reach around 300W on an all-core workload.
Check out TechSpot’s review of the Core i913900K here.
Intel Core i9-13900K vs Core i9-12900K
Based on Intel’s internal testing, the Core i9-13900K is up to 20% faster than the Core i9-12900K in gaming performance. Although, if you look closely at the graph, not all games benefit from the new CPUs. Most however did get some performance gains.
Intel Core i9-13900K vs Ryzen 9 5950X
When compared to AMD’s previous Ryzen 9 5950X, the performance gains vary from one game title to another. These are obviously cherry-picked titles, so we’ll have to wait for independent reviews to go live.
Intel also showed some productivity benchmarks during their presentation. And based on their internal testing, there is quite an improvement in productivity workloads, like Photoshop, Premiere Pro, After Effects, and some 3D rendering.
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D Competes In Gaming
Source: Linus Tech Tips
I guess, if there’s one CPU that challenges both AMD’s latest Ryzen 7000 CPUs and Intel’s 13th Gen Core CPUs, it’s none other than AMD’s older Ryzen 7 5800X3D. The 3D V-cache on this CPU works wonders in gaming. It can compete with the current flagship CPU in gaming performance. Although, the 5800X3D is not that good when it comes to productivity workloads. Still, it can hold its candle when it comes to gaming. No, wonder Intel is quite hesitant to (clearly) add the performance bar on its presentation slide. Linus had to “fix” it for them.
When it comes to gaming, I think both the 13th gen Intel Core Raptor Lake CPUs and the AMD Ryzen 7000 CPUs would be fantastic. But if ever AMD would release a Ryzen “7800X3D”, I think that would be much better for gaming purposes.
Productivity-wise, we’ll have to see for official reviews to go live. I’m quite curious to see productivity benchmarks between these new CPUs. Because when it comes to gaming, all of these latest CPUs are more than capable enough and offer huge improvements from their predecessors. I’m sure, these CPUs will be revisited once reviews for NVIDIA’s RTX 4090 go live.
UPDATE: Check the latest pricing and availability:
13th Gen Intel Core CPUs are available on Amazon.com here or Newegg.com here.
AMD Ryzen 7000 Zen 4 CPUs are now available on Amazon.com here or Newegg.com here.
