i7-940 vs i5-6400

VS

Aggregate performance score

Core i5-6400
2015
4 cores / 4 threads, 65 Watt
3.41
+83.3%
Core i7-940
2008
4 cores / 8 threads, 130 Watt
1.86

Core i5-6400 outperforms Core i7-940 by an impressive 83% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking15641999
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation0.780.24
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
SeriesIntel Core i5Core i7 (Desktop)
Power efficiency4.961.35
Architecture codenameSkylake (2015−2016)Bloomfield (2008−2010)
Release date1 September 2015 (9 years ago)November 2008 (16 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$187$299

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

i5-6400 has 225% better value for money than i7-940.

Detailed specifications

Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940 basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores4 (Quad-Core)4 (Quad-Core)
Threads48
Base clock speed2.7 GHz2.93 GHz
Boost clock speed3.3 GHz3.2 GHz
Bus typeDMI 3.0no data
Bus rate4 × 8 GT/s1333 MHz
Multiplier27no data
L1 cache256 KB64 KB (per core)
L2 cache1 MB256 KB (per core)
L3 cache6 MB (shared)8 MB (shared)
Chip lithography14 nm45 nm
Die size122 mm2263 mm2
Maximum core temperatureno data68 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)72 °Cno data
Number of transistorsno data731 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility--

Compatibility

Information on Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940 compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration1 (Uniprocessor)1
SocketFCLGA1151FCLGA1366
Power consumption (TDP)65 Watt130 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2Intel® SSE4.2
AES-NI+-
AVX+-
vPro+no data
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)++
Turbo Boost Technology2.01.0
Hyper-Threading Technology-+
Idle States++
Thermal Monitoring+-
Demand Based Switchingno data-
PAEno data36 Bit

Security technologies

Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT-+
EDB++
Secure Key+no data
MPX+-
Identity Protection+-
SGXYes with Intel® MEno data
OS Guard+no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940 are enumerated here.

AMD-V+-
VT-d+no data
VT-x++
EPT++

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR3, DDR4DDR3
Maximum memory size64 GB24 GB
Max memory channels23
Maximum memory bandwidth34.134 GB/s25.6 GB/s

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardIntel HD Graphics 530no data
Max video memory64 GBno data
Quick Sync Video+-
Clear Video+no data
Clear Video HD+no data
Graphics max frequency950 MHzno data
InTru 3D+no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported3no data
eDP+no data
DisplayPort+-
HDMI+-
DVI+no data

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940 integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

4K resolution support+no data
Max resolution over HDMI 1.44096x2304@24Hzno data
Max resolution over eDP4096x2304@60Hzno data
Max resolution over DisplayPort4096x2304@60Hzno data
Max resolution over VGAN/Ano data

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940 integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX12no data
OpenGL4.5no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940.

PCIe version3.0no data
PCI Express lanes16no data

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

i5-6400 3.41
+83.3%
i7-940 1.86

Passmark

Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.

i5-6400 5417
+83.8%
i7-940 2947

GeekBench 5 Single-Core

GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.

i5-6400 1125
+149%
i7-940 452

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.

i5-6400 3064
+96.8%
i7-940 1557

Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core

Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.

i5-6400 5088
+43.3%
i7-940 3550

Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.

i5-6400 18297
+31.7%
i7-940 13888

wPrime 32

wPrime 32M is a math multi-thread processor test, which calculates square roots of first 32 million integer numbers. Its result is measured in seconds, so that the less is benchmark result, the faster the processor.

i5-6400 10.48
+27.9%
i7-940 13.4

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.

i5-6400 6
+20.6%
i7-940 5

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 3.41 1.86
Threads 4 8
Chip lithography 14 nm 45 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 65 Watt 130 Watt

i5-6400 has a 83.3% higher aggregate performance score, a 221.4% more advanced lithography process, and 100% lower power consumption.

i7-940, on the other hand, has 100% more threads.

The Core i5-6400 is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i7-940 in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-6400 and Core i7-940, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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Intel Core i5-6400
Core i5-6400
Intel Core i7-940
Core i7-940

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Community ratings

Here you can see how users rate the processors, as well as rate them yourself.


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Questions & comments

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