Hardware News

Intel 'Ivy Bridge' Core i5-3470 CPU Review

Patrick "MACMAC" MacMillan

2012-06-05 16:43:20.0


Hot Hardware have reviewed the new Intel Core i5-3470, which is a quad-core/four-thread chip with partially unlocked multipliers. It has a 3.2Ghz default clock, can Turbo Boost up to 3.6GHz, has 6MB of L3 cache, a dual-channel DDR3-1600 memory interface, 16 PCI-E lanes, native support for PCI-Express 3.0 and USB 3.0, a low 77W TDP, and a HD Graphics 2500 IGP.

Let's see what they had to say:

"Although it is not targeted at the ultra high end market, the Core i5-3470 offers excellent performance nonetheless. The Core i5-3470’s somewhat lower clocks, smaller L3 cache, and lack of Hyper-Threading obviously lower its CPU performance versus Intel’s current flagship Ivy Bridge-based Core i7-3770K processor, but the deltas separating the two chips are relatively small in single- or lightly-threaded workloads.

The Intel Core i5-3470 should be available very soon at a price right around $184 (in 1K quantities). At that price, the Core i5-3470 should be a compelling option, although we expect street prices to be somewhat higher. The lower-end Core i5-3450, for example, is currently selling for $199. Prices are either going to drop a bit on lower-end Ivy Bridge-based processors or retailers are going to charge a small premium for the Core i5-3470. We’d bet on retailers charging a small premium for now."


This is an impressive mid-range processor, though hopefully a K version will be released soon and address the lack of overclocking potential.

Click here to read the full review.

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