AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 7840U vs Intel Core i7-7700HQ vs Intel Pentium Gold 4415U

AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 7840U

The AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 7840U is a fast high-end laptop processor of the Phoenix series and fastest model of the U-series. It offers 8 cores (octa core) based on the Zen 4 architecture that supports hyperthreading (16 threads). The cores clock from 3.3 (base) up to 5.1 GHz (single core boost). The processor includes 8 MB L2 cache and 16 MB L3 cache.

Compared to the consumer Ryzen 7 7840U, the PRO models offer additional security, manageability, and reliability features designed for professional users and workstation environments.

The performance of the R7 PRO 7840U is, depending on the workload, only slightly below the Ryzen 7 7840HS (higher base clock speed and TDP). Compared to the previous generation Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, the 7840U is clearly faster thanks to the Zen 4 architecture and higher clock speeds.

The chip integrates a modern and fasts RDNA 3 graphics card (iGPU) called Radeon 780M with 12 CUs and up to 2.7 GHz clock speed. Furthermore, the Phoenix series include a video engine with AV1 de- and encoding, a new Xilinx FPGA based XDNA AI accelerator (Ryzen AI) that should be faster than the AI engine in the Apple M2 SOC and a dual-channel DDR5-5600 / LPDDR5x-7500 memory controller (with ECC support). The connectivity features includes 2 possible USB 4 (40 Gbps) ports and 20 PCIe 4.0 lanes for a GPU and SSDs.

The Phoenix series uses a single monolithic design (unlike the chiplet design of the 7045HX series) and is manufactured in the modern 4nm process at TSMC. The TDP can be configured between 15 and 30 Watt.

Intel Core i7-7700HQ

The Intel Core i7-7700HQ is a fast quad-core processor for notebooks based on the Kaby Lake H architecture (7th generation Core), which was announced in January 2017 at CES. It is the successor to the Core i7-6700HQ from the Skylake generation and is manufactured in an improved 14 nm+ process, so the clocks are 200 MHz higher at the same TDP. The architecture was not changed, only the video engine got an update (see our Kaby Lake article).

The integrated graphics card is called Intel HD Graphics 630, but the architecture does not differ from the 530 GPU from the Skylake generation and only the clocks are slightly higher. 

Performance

Thanks to the 200 MHz higher clocks (5.5-7.6% depending on the Boost), the CPU performance is increased and roughly on par with the Core i7-6970HQ (2.8-3.7 GHz but with 128 MB eDRAM). The TDP can also be reduced to 35 Watts (cTDP down), but this will reduce the performance.

Power Consumption

Due to its 45-Watt TDP, the CPU will be used in bigger notebooks with at least 15 inches most of the time.

Intel Pentium Gold 4415U

The Intel Pentium 4415U is an ULV (ultra low voltage) dual-core SoC based on the Kaby-Lake architecture and has been launched in the first quarter of 2017. The CPU can be found in ultrabooks as well as normal notebooks. In addition to two CPU cores with Hyper-Threading clocked at 2.3 GHz (no Turbo Boost), the chip also integrates an HD Graphics 610 GPU and a dual-channel DDR4-2133/DDR3L-1600 memory controller. The SoC is manufactured using a 14 nm process with FinFET transistors.

Architecture

Intel basically uses the same micro architecture compared to Skylake, so the per-MHz performance does not differ. The manufacturer only reworked the Speed Shift technology for faster dynamic adjustments of voltages and clocks, and the improved 14nm process allows much higher frequencies combined with better efficiency than before.

Performance

Compared to the more expensive Core i3-7100U, the 4415U offers a similar CPU performance (2.3 versus 2.4 GHz) and less level 3 cache but a slower integrated graphics card. Still, the CPU has sufficient power for office and multimedia purposes as well as somewhat more demanding applications.

Graphics

The integrated graphics unit called HD Graphics 610 (similar to the HD Graphics 510) represents the "GT1" version of the Kaby Lake GPU (Intel Gen. 9). Its 12 Execution Units, also called EUs, are clocked at 300 - 950 MHz and offer a performance somewhat below the older HD Graphics 4400. Only a few games of 2015 can be played smoothly in lowest settings.

Power Consumption

Specified at a TDP of 15 W (including CPU, GPU and memory controller), the CPU is best suited for small notebooks and ultrabooks (11-inches and above). Optionally, the TDP can be lowered to 10 watts (cTDP down), reducing both heat dissipation and performance and allowing even more compact designs.