i5-6442EQ vs i7-4790

Place in the ranking	1307	1680
Place by popularity	54	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.87	0.40
Market segment	Desktop processor	Laptop
Series	Core i7 (Desktop)	Intel Core i5
Power efficiency	5.15	10.67
Architecture codename	Haswell (2013−2015)	Skylake (2015−2016)
Release date	1 May 2014 (10 years ago)	12 October 2015 (9 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$303	$250

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

i7-4790 has 118% better value for money than i5-6442EQ.

Detailed specifications

Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ 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 cores	4 (Quad-Core)	4 (Quad-Core)
Threads	8	4
Base clock speed	3.6 GHz	no data
Boost clock speed	4 GHz	1.9 GHz
Bus type	no data	DMI 3.0
Bus rate	5 GT/s	4 × 8 GT/s
Multiplier	no data	19
L1 cache	64K (per core)	256 KB
L2 cache	256K (per core)	1 MB
L3 cache	8 MB (shared)	6 MB
Chip lithography	22 nm	14 nm
Die size	177 mm²	122 mm²
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	72 °C	no data
Number of transistors	1,400 million	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ 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 configuration	1	1 (Uniprocessor)
Socket	FCLGA1150	no data
Power consumption (TDP)	84 Watt	25 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2	no data
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
vPro	+	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
My WiFi	+	no data
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	no data
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	no data
TSX	-	+
Idle States	+	no data
Thermal Monitoring	+	-
SIPP	+	-
FDI	+	no data

Security technologies

Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	+
EDB	+	no data
Secure Key	+	no data
Identity Protection	+	-
OS Guard	+	no data
Anti-Theft	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	no data
Maximum memory size	32 GB	64 GB
Max memory channels	2	no data
Maximum memory bandwidth	25.6 GB/s	34.134 GB/s

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card Compare	Intel HD Graphics 4600	Intel HD Graphics 530
Max video memory	2 GB	no data
Quick Sync Video	+	-
Clear Video HD	+	no data
Graphics max frequency	1.2 GHz	no data
InTru 3D	+	no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported	3	no data
eDP	+	no data
DisplayPort	+	-
HDMI	+	-
DVI	+	no data
VGA	+	no data

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

Max resolution over HDMI 1.4	4096x2304@24Hz	no data
Max resolution over eDP	3840x2160@60Hz	no data
Max resolution over DisplayPort	3840x2160@60Hz	no data
Max resolution over VGA	1920x1200@60Hz	no data

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX	11.2/12	no data
OpenGL	4.3	no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ.

PCIe version	Up to 3.0	3.0
PCI Express lanes	16	16

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.

i7-4790 4.57
+62.1%

i5-6442EQ 2.82

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.

i7-4790 7267
+62.1%

i5-6442EQ 4483

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	4.57	2.82
Integrated graphics card	1.84	2.60
Recency	1 May 2014	12 October 2015
Threads	8	4
Chip lithography	22 nm	14 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	84 Watt	25 Watt

i7-4790 has a 62.1% higher aggregate performance score, and 100% more threads.

i5-6442EQ, on the other hand, has 41.3% faster integrated GPU, an age advantage of 1 year, a 57.1% more advanced lithography process, and 236% lower power consumption.

The Core i7-4790 is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i5-6442EQ in performance tests.

Note that Core i7-4790 is a desktop processor while Core i5-6442EQ is a notebook one.

Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-4790 and Core i5-6442EQ, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.