Intel Core i5-8300H vs AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS vs Intel Core i9-9880H

Intel Core i5-8300H

The Intel Core i5-8300H is a fast processor for laptops with four cores based on the Coffee Lake architecture and was announced early 2018. The processor clocks at between 2.3 and 4 GHz (3.9 with 4 cores) and can execute up to eight threads simultaneously thanks to Hyper-Threading. According to Intel, the CPU is manufactured in an improved 14nm (14nm++) process.

The Coffee Lake architecture is similar to Kaby Lake and differs only in the amount of cores (now six cores for the high end versions) and the improved 14nm process (14nm++ according to Intel).

Performance

The Intel Core i5-8300H should perform similar as the older Core i7-7820HQ (2.9 - 4 GHz). The faster Coffee Lake CPUs, like the Core i7-8750H offers two additional cores and is therefore up to 50% faster in multithreaded benchmarks. Still, the performance of the i5-8300H should be sufficient for even demanding applications and games.

Graphics

The integrated Intel UHD Graphics 630 iGPU is supposed to offer a slightly higher performance as its clock rate has been increased by 50 MHz (rumored). The architecture is identical to that of the Intel HD Graphics 630. We do expect a performance improvement, but as a low-end solution it will probably only display current games smoothly at reduced details - if at all.

Power Consumption

Intel specifies the TDP with 45 watts and therefore the i5 is only suited for big laptops with good cooling solutions. Using cTDP-down, the CPU can also be configured to 35 Watt resulting in a reduced performance.

AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS

The AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS is a processor for big (gaming) laptops based on the Rembrandt generation. The R9 6900HS integrates all eight cores based on the Zen 3+ microarchitecture. They are clocked at 3.3 (guaranteed base clock) to 4.9 GHz (Turbo) and support SMT / Hyperthreading (16 threads). The chip is manufactured on the modern 6 nm TSMC process. The HS variant offers a 10 W lower TDP and therefore a lower sustained performance than the HX version.

The new Zen 3+ is a refresh of the Zen 3 architecture and should not offer a lot of changes. The chip itself however, offers a lot of new features, like support for USB 4 (40 Gbps), PCI-E Gen 4, DDR5-4800MT/s or LPDDR5-6400MT/s, WiFi 6E, Bluetooth LE 5.2, DisplayPort 2, and AV1 decode.

Performance

The average 6900HS in our database matches the Intel Core i7-12800H in multi-thread performance while managing to keep up with the more power-hungry 6900HX. "Top of the crop" is precisely the right phrase to describe this Ryzen 9 series chip, as of Q4 2022, and it will have no difficulty ripping through any task imaginable for years to come.

Your mileage may vary depending on how high the CPU power limits are, and how competent the cooling solution of your system is.

A big novelty is the integrated GPU Radeon 680M, that is now based on the RDNA2 architecture and offers 12 CUs at up to 2.4 GHz. It should be the fastest iGPU of all at the time of announcement.

The TDP of the APU is specified at 35 Watts and therefore better suited for thin and light laptops. The power efficiency should be very good, thanks to the improved 6 nm process  and additional power saving features in the 6000 series.

Intel Core i9-9880H

The Intel Core i9-9880H is a high-end processor for laptops with eight cores based on the Coffee Lake architecture (2019 refresh, CFL-HR). The processor clocks at between 2.3 - 4.8 GHz (4.1 GHz with 8 cores) and can execute up to sixteen threads simultaneously thanks to Hyper-Threading. The 4.8 GHz can only be reached using the "Thermal Velocity Boost" which allows one core to boost to 4.8 GHz (+200 MHz) as long as the CPU temperature is below 50°C. Multiple cores can be boosted +100 MHz below 50°C (not verified). Compared to the predecessor, the Core i9-8950HK, the 9980H is based on the same architecture but offers 2 more cores.

According to Intel, the CPU is manufactured in an improved 14nm (14nm++) process. The i9-8950HK is the fastest model of the Coffee-Lake-H series at the time of announcement and offers an unlocked multiplier for overclocking of the CPU.

The Coffee Lake architecture is similar to Kaby Lake and differs only in the amount of cores (now six cores for the high end versions) and the improved 14nm process (14nm++ according to Intel).

Performance

Due to the two additional cores, performance has increased by almost 33% compared to a similar clocked predecessor and even up to 100% compared to older Kaby-Lake quad-cores. Single thread performance however only improved slightly and the multi-core performance is heavily depending on the cooling.

Graphics

The integrated Intel UHD Graphics 630 iGPU is supposed to offer a slightly higher performance as its clock rate has been increased by 50 MHz. The architecture is identical to that of the Intel HD Graphics 630. We do expect a performance improvement, but as a low-end solution it will probably only display current games smoothly at reduced details - if at all.

Power Consumption

Intel specifies the TDP with 45 watts and therefore the i9 is only suited for big laptops with good cooling solutions.