Skylake: Core i7-6700K Review
Intel Core i7 6700K
The Skylake Quad-Core flagship processor
We review the Intel Core i7 6700K flagship quad-core processor fabbed at a 14nm node. This little puppy is fast and agile, but will it be worth an upgrade? For this review we look at the performance of this processor in a wide variety of benchmarks and situations. Skylake Core i5 6600K and Core i7 6700K processors for the desktop platform have been released. We test both processors, yet have separate reviews on each of these processors. A new chip, a new package meaning both of them are Socket 1151. The new series Skylake processors are energy efficient, quite powerful and this need to be paired with a new motherboard series. For you guys that means the Z170 and H170 range. An unlocked Skylake processor that has four cores and a 91W TDP, that number is lower compared to Haswell with its 95W TDP, obviously thanks to the new and smaller 14nm fabrication process.
CPU | Core i7-5775C | Core i5-5675C | Core i7-6700K | Core i5-6600K | Core i7-4790K | Core i7-4770K |
Codename | Broadwell | Broadwell | Skylake | Skylake | Haswell | Haswell |
Package | LGA 1150 | LGA 1150 | LGA 1151 | LGA 1151 | LGA 1150 | LGA 1150 |
Cores/threads | 4/8 | 4/4 | 4/8 | 4/4 | 4/8 | 4/8 |
Frequency(GHz) | 3.3-3.7 | 3.1-3.6 | 4.0-4.2 | 3.5-3.9 | 4.0-4.4 | 3.5-3.9 |
memory | DDR3-1600 | DDR3-1600 | DDR4-2133 | DDR4-2133 | DDR3-1600 | DDR3-1600 |
IGP | Iris Pro 6200 | Iris Pro 6200 | Intel HD 530 | Intel HD 530 | Intel HD 4600 | Intel HD 4600 |
L3 Cache | 6MB | 4MB | 8MB | 6MB | 8MB | 8MB |
Fab | 14nm | 14nm | 14nm | 14nm | 22nm | 22nm |
Unlocked multiplier | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
TDP | 65W | 65W | 91W | 91W | 84W | 95W |
The quad core CPU has 8 MB L3 cache, and an integrated memory controller that supports both DDR4 and DDR3 memory. The Z170 and H170 series motherboards will all be offered with DDR4 though. For the gaming community two processors are the most important:
- Core i7 6700K
Four CPU cores with Hyper-Threading, 4.0 GHz frequency, 4.20 GHz maximum Turbo Boost frequency, 8 MB last-level cache, dual-channel DDR3/DDR4 memory controller with 1600 MHz or 2133 MHz support, Intel HD Graphics 530-series integrated graphics core, LGA 1151 packaging
- Core i5 6600K
Four cores, 3.50 GHz frequency, 3.90 GHz maximum Turbo Boost frequency, 6 MB last-level cache, dual-channel DDR3/DDR4 memory controller with 1600 MHz or 2133 MHz support, Intel HD Graphics 530-series integrated graphics core, LGA 1151 packaging
Skylake is the code name used by Intel for the 14nm processor micro-architecture under development and is the successor to the Broadwell architecture.
As stated, in this review we focus on the flagship quad-core Skylake based offering, the Core i7 6700K, armed with the right motherboard this processor is dressed to impress. The Intel Core i7-6700K processor runs up to a 4.2 GHz clock speed, has 8 MB cache, 4 cores, 8 threads. Let's get started shall we?