The Intel 300 is a relatively odd CPU entry in the 14th Gen desktop family & has now been benchmarked to show why dual cores don't have a place in 2024.
Intel 300 CPU Benchmarks Show That Dual-Core CPUs Have No Place In 2024 For Any Kind of Work
The Intel 300 CPU is the firm's attempt to keep the "Pentium" heritage alive, by giving it a new life through current-gen architectures. It comes under a completely new naming convention and is the direct successor to the Pentium Gold G7400. For those confused, the Intel 300 comes under the Raptor Lake series, and one shouldn't confuse it with the "Alder Lake-N" models such as the N200, which is a completely separate lineup and rather focuses on the E-Core architecture.
In terms of the specification of the CPU, the Intel 300 features 2 P-Cores based on the Raptor Cove architecture hence a total of four threads onboard. The processor features the lowest TDP in the complete lineup, rated at just 46W, which makes it a power-efficient option in some scenarios at least. The Intel 300 also features 6 MB of L3 cache (3 MB per core) along with a boost clock of up to 3.9 GHz. Looking at the complete lineup, the closest competitor in the Raptor Lake lineup of the Intel 300 is the Core i3-14100, and based on the benchmarks done by PC Watch, the performance difference is still quite high.
Moving on to synthetic benchmarks, the Intel 300 CPU is well behind the Core i3-14100 both in single-core and multi-core testing at Geekbench, and interestingly the performance difference reaches as high as 55%, which is solely due to the Intel 300 processor lacking capabilities such as Turbo Boost, which pushes it back in terms of squeezing out every bit of power. The same case is with benchmarking on UL Procyon, which is a video editing test, and by the looks of it, choosing the Intel 300 for media purposes won't be the right option.
Next up are gaming benchmarks, and PC Watch has tested multiple titles ranging from Call of Duty to F1 2023, and as expected, the Intel 300 in no way comes at a level where you would expect a seamless gaming experience. The processor lags behind the Core i3-14100 in every manner, and the percent of performance gap is consistently in double digits, which is why opting for the Intel 300 could only work out if your usage is less-intensive tasks.
Well, the rest of the coverage by PC Watch dwells on the performance of the Raptor Lake Refresh lineup and has shown the generational gap among the processors. However, the showcase of the Intel 300 is quite interesting and questionable at the same time, since the SoC is no way in a spot to see a wider industry adoption, at least what the benchmarks tell us. The CPU sells for $82 US & you are better off buying a decent quad-core chip a generation or two older in its place and get vastly better performance.
Intel 14th Gen Raptor Lake-S Refresh Desktop CPU Specs:
| CPU Name | Cores | Threads | Base Clock | Boost Clock | L2 / L3 Cache | TDP (PL1) | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core i9-14900KS | 8+16 (24) | 32 | 3.2 GHz | 6.2 GHz | 32 / 36 MB | 150W | $699 US |
| Core i9-14900K | 8+16 (24) | 32 | 3.2 GHz | 6.0 GHz | 32 / 36 MB | 125W | $589 US |
| Core i9-14900KF | 8+16 (24) | 32 | 3.2 GHz | 6.0 GHz | 32 / 36 MB | 125W | $564 US |
| Core i9-14900 | 8+16 (24) | 32 | 2.0 GHz | 5.8 GHz | 32 / 36 MB | 65W | $549 US |
| Core i9-14900F | 8+16 (24) | 32 | 2.0 GHz | 5.8 GHz | 32 / 36 MB | 65W | $524 US |
| Core i9-14900T | 8+16 (24) | 32 | 1.1 GHz | 5.5 GHz | 32 / 36 MB | 35W | $549 US |
| Core i7-14700K | 8+12 (20) | 28 | 3.4 GHz | 5.6 GHz | 28 / 33 MB | 125W | $409 US |
| Core i7-14700KF | 8+12 (20) | 28 | 3.4 GHz | 5.6 GHz | 28 / 33 MB | 125W | $384 US |
| Core i7-14700 | 8+12 (20) | 28 | 2.1 GHz | 5.4 GHz | 28 / 33 MB | 65W | $384 US |
| Core i7-14700F | 8+12 (20) | 28 | 2.1 GHz | 5.4 GHz | 28 / 33 MB | 65W | $359 US |
| Core i7-14700T | 8+12 (20) | 28 | 1.3 GHz | 5.2 GHz | 28 / 33 MB | 35W | $384 US |
| Core i7-14790F | 8+8 (16) | 24 | 2.1 GHz | 5.4 GHz | 24 / 36 MB | 65W | TBD |
| Core i5-14600K | 6+8 (14) | 20 | 3.5 GHz | 5.3 GHz | 20 / 24 MB | 125W | $319 US |
| Core i5-14600KF | 6+8 (14) | 20 | 3.5 GHz | 5.3 GHz | 20 / 24 MB | 125W | $294 US |
| Core i5-14600 | 6+8 (14) | 20 | 2.7 GHz | 5.2 GHz | 20 / 24 MB | 65W | $255 US |
| Core i5-14500 | 6+8 (14) | 20 | 2.6 GHz | 5.0 GHz | 20 / 24 MB | 65W | $232 US |
| Core i5-14500T | 6+8 (14) | 20 | 1.7 GHz | 4.8 GHz | 20 / 24 MB | 35W | $232 US |
| Core i5-14400 | 6+8 (14) | 20 | 2.5 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 9.5/ 20 MB | 65W | $221 US |
| Core i5-14400F | 6+8 (14) | 20 | 2.5 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 9.5/ 20 MB | 65W | $196 US |
| Core i5-14490F | 6+4(10) | 16 | 2.8 GHz | 4.9 GHz | 9.5/ 24 MB | 65W | TBD |
| Core i5-14400 | 6+4(10) | 16 | 2.5 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 9.5/ 20 MB | 65W | $221 US |
| Core i5-14400F | 6+4(10) | 16 | 2.5 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 9.5/ 20 MB | 65W | $221 US |
| Core i5-14400T | 6+4(10) | 16 | 1.5 GHz | 4.5 GHz | 9.5/ 20 MB | 35W | $196 US |
| Core i3-14100 | 4+0 (4) | 8 | 3.5 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 5.0 / 12 MB | 60W | $134 US |
| Core i3-14100F | 4+0 (4) | 8 | 3.5 GHz | 4.7 GHz | 5.0 / 12 MB | 58W | $109 US |
| Core i3-14100T | 4+0 (4) | 8 | 2.7 GHz | 4.4 GHz | 5.0 / 12 MB | 35W | $109 US |
| Intel 310 | 2+0 (2) | 4 | 4.1 GHz | N/A | 2.5 / 6.0 MB | 46W | $82 US? |
| Intel 300 | 2+0 (2) | 4 | 3.9 GHz | N/A | 2.5 / 6.0 MB | 46W | $82 US |
| Intel 300T | 2+0 (2) | 4 | 3.4 GHz | N/A | 2.5 / 6.0 MB | 35W | $82 US |
News Source: VideoCardz
About the author: Muhammad Zuhair is a hardware and technology reporter for Wccftech, specializing in the semiconductor industry and the complex interplay between technology, manufacturing, and geopolitics. His coverage focuses on the corporate strategies and technological roadmaps of industry giants like TSMC, NVIDIA, Samsung, and Intel. Zuhair's expertise lies in deconstructing complex topics such as fabrication nodes (e.g., 2nm process), the economic impact of policies like the CHIPS Act, and the strategic development of AI infrastructure from NVIDIA, AMD and Intel.
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