Every computer needs a central processor to operate, which processes the computer programs and data requested by the user, and then outputs the information that the user wants, that part is usually known come with the name CPU.
CPU (Central Processing Unit) is a circuit that processes data according to a pre-set program. The Central Processing Unit consists of a Control Unit and a Computing Block.
One of the world's largest CPU manufacturers is Intel, which has a near monopoly in PCs and servers. Through a long development process since 1971, Intel's chips have become more and more modern and powerful with new technologies being applied. Currently, Intel has 3 main processor product lines for general users: Intel Pentium, Intel Celeron, Intel Core i.
Intel Pentium CPU
Pentium is a line of processor chips manufactured by Intel with the aim of achieving stable performance at the most affordable price. This chip line is often used on mid-range configuration models with affordable prices.
To lower the price Pentium CPU does not support modern technologies such as Turbo Boost or hyperthreading due to its affordable price, but in return the product is compatible with many boards from different brands.
The usual Intel Pentium has 2 processor cores (a few have 4 cores) with clocks ranging from 1.1 GHz to 3.5 GHz. Currently, the Pentium CPU has been upgraded by Intel to the Haswell generation and is manufactured at the 22 nm process for super power saving TDP 15W and better processing performance than the old generation Core i CPU.
Intel Celeron
Celeron is Intel's entry-level processor for basic computing tasks, like email, the Internet, and document creation. Intel Celeron can be considered as a shortened line of Pentium chips to reduce costs with fewer transistors in the Celeron chip and smaller Cache memory. You can easily find Celeron chips on cheap and popular computer products.
In common tasks, Pentium and Celeron are almost equivalent (If the same number of cores and same processing speed) but when running in powerful applications such as graphics processing, games, and videos, the Pentium has a fast speed. 1.5 to 2 times more.
Like the Pentium, Celeron has now been upgraded to the Haswell generation, which is a ULV power-saving line, TDP 15W. Intel Celeron Haswell is oriented to use on cheap laptops and ultrabooks but still ensures stable performance. The new Haswell architecture makes the Celeron CPU more than enough to handle everyday computing tasks or even watch FullHD movies.
Intel Core i (10 generations)
Up to now (2020), the Intel Core I CPU family has gone through 10 generations: Nehalem, Sandy Bridge, Ivy Bridge, Haswell, Broadwell, Skylake, Kabylake, Coffelake, Coffee Lake Refresh, Ice Lake. The newer generation has improved processing capabilities and is equipped with a more powerful integrated graphics card than the previous generation. The latest generation is also the generation with powerful performance and the most modern technologies.
Intel Core I product lines
Currently, Intel Core i CPUs have 3 product lines with increasing performance: Core i3, Core i5 and Core i7.
All Core i3 series processors have 2 cores, whether on a laptop or a desktop. Core i3 processors support Hyper Threading multi-threading technology, but there is no Turbo Boost that allows automatic overclocking of the processor when running heavy tasks.
Meanwhile, Core i5 is a mid-range product line. Most Core i5 desktop chips have 4 cores (only a few have 2 cores) and all have Turbo Boost technology, but no Hyper Threading. Core i5 on laptops has only 2 cores, but all have both Turbo Boost and Hyper Threading technologies.
And the final product line is Core i7 with the most powerful performance and modern technologies. All Core i7 products have both Turbo Boost and Hyper Threading technologies. Core i7 on desktop has 4 or 6 cores. Core i7 on laptops can have 2 or 4 cores.
New technologies have been applied on Intel Core I chips
Turbo Boost Technology
Turbo Boost is a feature only available on Core i5 and i7 processors of the Intel Core i series that allows the processors to temporarily overclock themselves. This feature helps some cores that need heavier processing to increase their own clocks to increase power efficiency and processing performance for the product.
Source Intel
Hyper Threading Technology (HTT)
Hyper Threading Technology is a hyper-threading technology (HT - Hyper Threading) that helps processor cores emulate one more core for processing. This feature makes it possible for the CPU to process more data streams than the actual multiplier available. This technology is available on all lines and generations of Intel Core i processors.
Generations of Intel Core i chips
Nehalem (First Generation)
The Nehalem architecture on Core i is designed by Intel to replace the old Core 2 architecture, Nehalem is still manufactured on the 32nm process. With Core I generation Nehalem, Intel for the first time integrated Turbo Boost technology along with Hyper Threading (hyper-threading technology - HT) on the same chip to significantly increase performance compared to previous generations of processors. before.
Sandy Bridge (2nd Generation)
Sandy Bridge is the successor to the Nehalem architecture. Sandy Bridge architecture continues to use 32 nm process but compared to Nehalem GPU (graphics processing core) and CPU (central processing unit) were manufactured on the same 32 nm process and in the same year on one sole. This design reduces space and increases power savings because the CPU and GPU will use the same cache.
In addition, video encoding/decoding capacity is also significantly increased with Intel Quick Sync Video feature. Turbo Boost feature is also upgraded with version 2.0.
Ivy Bridge (3rd Generation)
Compared to Sandy Bridge, Intel's Ivy Bridge used a new 22 nm manufacturing process and used 3D Tri-Gate transistor technology. The new manufacturing process reduces the base area while significantly increasing the number of transistors on the CPU.
Ivy Bridge also has a built-in DirectX 11-enabled graphics chip like the HD 4000, capable of playing super-resolution video and processing 3D content.
Haswell (4th Generation)
The Haswell chip generation is focused on "2-in-1" devices. Intel has reduced the size of its Core processors, allowing for thinner ultrabooks, but also helping to make 2-in-1 devices (also known as laptop-tablet hybrids) thinner. The thermal management chip on Haswell also helps ultrabook devices run cooler.
Haswel is also claimed by Intel to be 20 times more power efficient than Sandy Bridge in standby mode while graphics performance is also significantly increased. In addition to upgrading from the Intel HD 4000 graphics chip, Intel also added the powerful Iris / Iris Pro graphics chip line for high-end chips.
Broadwell (5th generation)
As the latest generation of Intel family, Broadwell is a miniaturized version of Haswell, say a miniature version but this is not the physical size of the chip but the miniaturization of the transistors that make it up. CPU brain.
Intel Broadwell uses 14nm sized transistors, which is almost half that of haswell and only 1/5 of the first generation. Intel is proud to say that Broadwell is 30% more efficient than haswell, meaning it consumes 30% less power but delivers more performance at the same clock speed. Intel Broadwell promises to create a new revolution with advantages such as: saving PIN, improving performance ..... It is expected that Intel will officially put its new generation of CPUs into products at the beginning. 2015.
Skylake (6th generation)
Skylake is Intel's processor running on 14 nm process like Broadwell. The Skylake CPU uses the new LGA1151 socket, which means it will not be compatible with LGA1150 motherboards being used for 4th (Haswell) and 5th (Broadwell) processors. Skylake supports DDR4 RAM, which means that DDR3 RAM is considered outdated though, Intel has included DDR3 support in the new memory controller built into Skylake CPUs, but not standard voltage DDR3 which is DDR3L.
The Skylake CPU is about 10% faster than the Core i7-4790K, 20% faster than the Core i7-4770K, and 30% faster than the Core i7-3770K. Compared to the 4th generation CPU (Haswell), Skylake is not significantly faster, but for those who are using the 3rd generation CPU (Ivy Bridge) it is worth thinking about.[2] Not compatible with Windows 7 or below operating system, although it can still be installed, it is not stable.
Kabylake (7th generation)
Following the Skylake CPU generation, Intel has officially launched its 7th generation CPU line with the code name Kaby Lake. This is still a CPU line manufactured on Intel's 14 nm technology, but has been significantly improved in terms of graphics processing performance and power saving. Intel said that the Kaby Lake CPUs will focus a lot on graphics processing capabilities, especially video with 4K resolution, 360-degree videos and virtual reality technology. At the same time, application processing performance is also increased by 12%, and web browsing performance is 19% higher than Skylake.
The 14 nm technology used to create these Kaby Lake CPUs is enhanced by Intel, and calls it the 14 nm+ process. This new generation of CPUs will also be equipped for ultra-thin laptops, hybrid tablets with a thickness of less than 7mm. Intel also revealed that this new generation of CPUs will provide maximum support for gamers, with 5 times more graphics processing power than PCs released 5 years ago. Especially thin and light laptops will also be able to handle games that require high graphics processing capabilities, like Overwatch.
Thunderbolt 3 connectivity will allow laptops equipped with Kaby Lake CPUs to easily connect to external discrete graphics cards. Enhances in-game graphics processing, supports 4K resolution and embraces virtual reality technology. Kaby Lake desktop CPU series could be released as early as 2017
According to the first evaluations of technology experts in the world, Intel Coffee Lake CPU is like a monster. Although the clock is reduced a bit, the addition of more processor cores has resulted in a significant improvement in performance. A total of 6 Intel Coffee Lake desktop processors have just been released. The most powerful is the Core i7-8700K, with 25% more performance than the i7-7700K. Especially, the ability to multitask, play games and handle streaming graphics is 45% stronger than the previous generation.
Coffee Lake Refresh (9th generation)
Essentially Coffee Lake Refresh (Coffee Lake-R) is still an improved version of Coffee Lake-S (Core I generation 8 for popular desktops) and still belongs to the Optimize 14 nm ++ cycle, which is synonymous with Kaby Lake, but still not get out of this vicious cycle
Ice Lake (10th generation)
Intel Core Ice Lake still has 3 versions, i3, i5 and i7 with a maximum clock speed of up to 4.1GHz when TurboBoost is enabled. This new generation CPU is also integrated with Intel DL Boost technology, which delivers about 2.5 times faster artificial intelligence performance and reduces latency.
Names of Celeron and Pentium series CPUs
Intel seems to be thinking that users who buy Pentium and Celeron processors don't care about processor power at all. Intel is using pretty… meaningless product names for the Pentium and Celeron product lines.
Try taking the name Pentium G860T as an example. The only meaningful part of the product name is the T at the end of the product name.
Pentium and Celeron processors with a T at the end of the name always have much lower power usage (and therefore less heat) than processors of the same name but without the T. Example , Pentium G860 has a power consumption of 65W, while Pentium G860T has a power consumption of only 35W. Pentium or Celeron processors with a U at the end of the product name are always slower and more expensive than processors with the same name.
How to distinguish Core i CPUs by name?
With many generations of Core i CPUs, users can easily distinguish these product generations through Intel's naming scheme. How to name the Intel Core i CPU series can be through the following formula:
Processor Name = Brand (Intel Core) + CPU Model Name – Generation Number (Generation 1 does not have this character) + SKU + Product Specification Character.
For example: CPU Core i Nehalem (1st Generation) the name will have the form:
Intel Core i3 - 520M, Intel Core i5 - 282U…
Meaning of the last few characters of the product name (Also there are other characters):
E (Chip E): Dual-core chip, balance between performance and cost.
Q (Q chip): 4-core chip, for high-end performance, suitable for laptops with high demand.
U (U Chip): This is a low-clock (GHz) energy-efficient CPU, commonly used on products that focus on energy saving.
M (M Chip): This is a CPU for ordinary laptops with high and powerful clocks. Usually used in gaming laptops or heavy graphics use.
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