Intel Core i7-4578U vs Intel Core i5-7287U vs Intel Core i7-4610Y

The Intel Core i7-4578U is a LV (low voltage) dual-core processor for large ultrabooks launched in Q3/2014. It is based on the Haswell architecture and is manufactured in 22nm. Due to Hyper-Threading, the two cores can handle up to four threads in parallel, leading to better utilization of the CPU. Each core offers a base speed of 3.0 GHz, but can dynamically increase clock rates with Turbo Boost up to 3.5 GHz.

Architecture

Haswell is the successor to the Ivy Bridge architecture with improvements on both GPU and CPU performance. The CPUs are produced in 22nm and offer an optimized branch prediction as well as additional execution ports, improving the performance per clock by almost 10 percent. Furthermore, new features like AVX2 and FMA should increase the performance in future applications.

Performance

The performance of the Core i7-4578U is slightly above the older and somewhat higher clocked Core i7-3540M. However, when using new instruction sets such as AVX2 the performance can be significantly better. Thus, the CPU has sufficient power for office and multimedia purposes as well as more demanding applications.

Graphics

The integrated Iris Graphics 5100 offers 40 Execution Units (EUs) clocked at 200 - 1200 MHz with Turbo Boost, making it significantly faster than the HD Graphics 4000. As a result, the Iris Graphics competes with dedicated lower mid-range graphics cards (e.g. GeForce GT 720M).

Power Consumption

The i7-4578U is rated at a TDP of 28 W including the graphics card, memory controller, VRMs and the integrated chipset. Therefore, the CPU is suited for larger, well-cooled ultrabooks.

The Intel Core i7-4610Y is an ULV (ultra low voltage) dual-core processor for ultrabooks and tablets launched in Q3 2013. It is based on the Haswell architecture and is manufactured in 22nm. Due to Hyper-Threading, the two cores can handle up to four threads in parallel, leading to better utilization of the CPU. Each core offers a base speed of 1.7 GHz, but can dynamically increase clock rates with Turbo Boost up to 2.9 GHz.

Architecture

Haswell is the successor to the Ivy Bridge architecture with improvements on both GPU and CPU performance. The CPUs are produced in 22nm and offer an optimized branch prediction as well as additional execution ports, improving performance per clock by almost 10 percent. Furthermore, new features like AVX2 and FMA should increase the performance in future applications.

Performance

Depending on the benchmark, the Core i7-4610Y offers a performance somewhere between a Core i3-2330M and a Core i7-4500U. Due to TDP limits, the full Turbo Boost will be only active for very short periods of time or in single-thread benchmarks. Overall, the CPU has sufficient power for office and multimedia purposes as well as more demanding applications.

Graphics

The integrated HD Graphics 4200 offers 20 Execution Units (EUs) clocked at 200 - 850 MHz with Turbo Boost, making it somewhat faster than the former HD Graphics 4000 at similar clock speeds. However, the HD 4200 is significantly slower than the HD 4400 found on other ULV models with higher clocks and TDP.

Power Consumption

The i7-4610Y is rated at a TDP of 11.5 watts (SDP 6 watts) including the graphics card, memory controller, VRMs and the integrated chipset. Therefore, the CPU is suited for very small ultrabooks or tablets.