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Intel Core i5-10500

Intel Core i5-10500: Review and Relevance in 2025

April 2025

Despite the rapid advancement of technology, processors from previous generations remain popular for budget and office builds. The Intel Core i5-10500, released in 2020, is still in use due to its balance of price and performance. Let’s explore who this chip is suitable for in 2025 and what considerations to keep in mind when building a PC based on it.

1. Key Specifications: Architecture, Process, Performance

Comet Lake Architecture: Outdated but Functional

The processor is based on the Comet Lake-S microarchitecture (14 nm), which was the last version of Intel's "classic" 14-nanometer chips before transitioning to 10 nm. Despite the outdated process, the 6 cores and 12 threads (Hyper-Threading) provide adequate multitasking capability for everyday tasks. The base frequency is 3.1 GHz, with a maximum boost in turbo mode of 4.5 GHz.

Performance in 2025

According to Geekbench 6 tests (Single-Core: ~1517, Multi-Core: ~5430), the i5-10500 falls short compared to modern counterparts like the Ryzen 5 7500F or the Core i5-13400, but it outstrips budget models like the Ryzen 3 5300G. For example:

- Office Tasks: Easily handles browsers, documents, and video conferences.

- Gaming: Paired with a graphics card like the NVIDIA GTX 1660 Super, it delivers 60+ FPS at Full HD on medium settings (e.g., Cyberpunk 2077, Horizon Zero Dawn).

- Rendering: In Blender or Adobe Premiere Pro, rendering simple projects takes about 20-30% longer compared to the Ryzen 5 5600.

Key Features:

- Integrated graphics UHD 630 — a lifesaver for office PCs.

- Official DDR4-2666 memory support.

- Low power consumption (TDP 65 W).

2. Compatible Motherboards

LGA 1200 Socket: Limited Choices in 2025

The processor requires motherboards with the LGA 1200 socket. Current chipsets include:

- H410/B460: Budget boards (ASRock H410M-HDV, MSI B460M-A Pro) without overclocking and PCIe 4.0.

- Z490: For enthusiasts (ASUS ROG Strix Z490-G) — supports memory overclocking and faster SSDs (PCIe 3.0 x4).

Selection Tips:

- Avoid boards with passive VRM cooling — throttling can occur under prolonged loads.

- Consider the number of USB ports and M.2 slots — necessary for modern NVMe drives.

3. Supported Memory Types

DDR4: Maximum 128 GB

Officially supports DDR4-2666 (for H410/B460 chipsets). On Z490, it can be overclocked to 2933 MHz. Recommendations:

- Optimal volume: 16 GB (2x8 GB) — sufficient for gaming and work.

- For rendering: 32 GB (2x16 GB) — for instance, Kingston Fury DDR4-3200.

Important: DDR5 and LPDDR4x are not supported.

4. Power Supply Units: Power Calculation

TDP 65 W — Doesn’t Mean “Weak”

Average power consumption under load is around 80 W. For a system with an NVIDIA RTX 3050 (130 W), a power supply of 450-500 W is sufficient. Examples:

- Budget: EVGA 500 BR (500 W, 80+ Bronze) — $45.

- Reliability: Corsair CX550M (550 W, semi-modular) — $65.

Advice: Don’t skimp on the PSU — low-quality models can damage components.

5. Pros and Cons of the Processor

Advantages:

- Price: In 2025, the new i5-10500 costs $120-130, which is cheaper than the Ryzen 5 5500 ($150).

- Energy Efficiency: Suitable for compact builds (Mini-ITX).

- Integrated Graphics: No need for a discrete graphics card for basic tasks.

Disadvantages:

- No PCIe 4.0: SSDs and graphics cards won't reach full speeds.

- Outdated Process: Higher temperatures compared to 7nm Ryzen.

- Memory Limitations: DDR4-2666 is a bottleneck in gaming.

6. Use Cases

Gaming:

Paired with an RTX 3060 (12 GB) and 16 GB DDR4:

- Fortnite (Epic, 1080p) — 90-100 FPS.

- Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 (Medium) — 70-80 FPS.

Work Tasks:

- Photo Editors: Photoshop, Lightroom — comfortable handling of RAW files.

- Programming: Android Studio, Docker — 6 cores are sufficient for parallel tasks.

Multimedia:

Streaming video (4K HDR), editing in DaVinci Resolve — delays are possible with complex effects.

7. Comparison with Competitors

- AMD Ryzen 5 3600: Cheaper ($100 used), but lacks integrated graphics. On par in gaming.

- Intel Core i5-11400: 10-15% faster, but more expensive ($160 new).

- Ryzen 5 5600G: Integrated Vega 7 graphics outperform UHD 630, but costs $180.

Conclusion: The i5-10500 is only competitive when discounts are available or in builds without a discrete graphics card.

8. Practical Assembly Tips

- Cooling: The stock cooler will suffice, but for quiet operation, choose DeepCool GAMMAXX 400 V2 ($25).

- Motherboard: ASUS Prime B460-Plus — a reliable option for $90.

- Storage: Kingston NV2 1 TB (PCIe 4.0, but will operate on PCIe 3.0) — $60.

- Case: Thermaltake Versa H18 (Compact, good ventilation) — $55.

9. Final Conclusion: Who Should Consider the i5-10500?

This processor is a good choice if:

- Your budget is limited to $400-500 — for an office PC or home media center.

- You need integrated graphics — for example, for a backup system.

- You require a platform that can upgrade to an i9-10900 (if you find a used chip).

In 2025, the i5-10500 is not the best choice for gaming or professional editing, but it remains one of the most affordable 6-core processors for basic tasks. If you are not chasing the latest technology, this chip can save you $50-100 without significant performance sacrifices.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Desktop

Launch Date

April 2020

Model Name

The Intel processor number is just one of several factors - along with processor brand, system configurations, and system-level benchmarks - to be considered when choosing the right processor for your computing needs.

i5-10500

Code Name

Comet Lake

CPU Specifications

Total Cores

Cores is a hardware term that describes the number of independent central processing units in a single computing component (die or chip).

Total Threads

Where applicable, Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology is only available on Performance-cores.

Basic Frequency

3.10 GHz

Max Turbo Frequency

Max Turbo Frequency is the maximum single-core frequency at which the processor is capable of operating using Intel® Turbo Boost Technology and, if present, Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 and Intel® Thermal Velocity Boost. Frequency is typically measured in gigahertz (GHz), or billion cycles per second.

4.50 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 Frequency

4.50 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Technology

Intel® Turbo Boost Technology dynamically increases the processor's frequency as needed by taking advantage of thermal and power headroom to give you a burst of speed when you need it, and increased energy efficiency when you don’t.

2.0

Intel Hyper-Threading Technology

Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology (Intel® HT Technology) delivers two processing threads per physical core. Highly threaded applications can get more work done in parallel, completing tasks sooner.

Yes

Intel Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0

Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 identifies the best performing core(s) on a processor and provides increased performance on those cores through increasing frequency as needed by taking advantage of power and thermal headroom.

L3 Cache

12 MB

CPU Socket

The socket is the component that provides the mechanical and electrical connections between the processor and motherboard.

FCLGA1200

Technology

Lithography refers to the semiconductor technology used to manufacture an integrated circuit, and is reported in nanometer (nm), indicative of the size of features built on the semiconductor.

14 nm

TDP

65 W

Max. Operating Temperature

Junction Temperature is the maximum temperature allowed at the processor die.

100°C

PCI Express Version

PCI Express Revision is the supported version of the PCI Express standard. Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (or PCIe) is a high-speed serial computer expansion bus standard for attaching hardware devices to a computer. The different PCI Express versions support different data rates.

3.0

Number of PCI Express Lanes

A PCI Express (PCIe) lane consists of two differential signaling pairs, one for receiving data, one for transmitting data, and is the basic unit of the PCIe bus. Max # of PCI Express Lanes is the total number of supported lanes.

Intel 64

Intel® 64 architecture delivers 64-bit computing on server, workstation, desktop and mobile platforms when combined with supporting software.¹ Intel 64 architecture improves performance by allowing systems to address more than 4 GB of both virtual and physical memory.

Yes

Instruction Set

The instruction set is a hard program stored inside the CPU that guides and optimizes CPU operations. With these instruction sets, the CPU can run more efficiently. There are many manufacturers that design CPUs, which results in different instruction sets, such as the 8086 instruction set for the Intel camp and the RISC instruction set for the ARM camp. x86, ARM v8, and MIPS are all codes for instruction sets. Instruction sets can be extended; for example, x86 added 64-bit support to create x86-64. Manufacturers developing CPUs that are compatible with a certain instruction set need authorization from the instruction set patent holder. A typical example is Intel authorizing AMD, enabling the latter to develop CPUs compatible with the x86 instruction set.

64-bit

PCI Express Configurations

PCI Express (PCIe) Configurations describe the available PCIe lane configurations that can be used to link to PCIe devices.

Up to 1x16 | 2x8 | 1x8+2x4

Memory Specifications

Memory Type

Intel® processors come in four different types: Single Channel, Dual Channel, Triple Channel, and Flex Mode. Maximum supported memory speed may be lower when populating multiple DIMMs per channel on products that support multiple memory channels.

DDR4-2666

Max Memory Size

Max memory size refers to the maximum memory capacity supported by the processor.

128 GB

Memory Channels

The number of memory channels refers to the bandwidth operation for real world application.

Bus Speed

8 GT/s

Max Memory Bandwidth

Max Memory bandwidth is the maximum rate at which data can be read from or stored into a semiconductor memory by the processor (in GB/s).

41.6 GB/s

ECC Memory Supported

ECC Memory Supported indicates processor support for Error-Correcting Code memory. ECC memory is a type of system memory that can detect and correct common kinds of internal data corruption. Note that ECC memory support requires both processor and chipset support.

GPU Specifications

Integrated Graphics Model

An integrated GPU refers to the graphics core that is integrated into the CPU processor. Leveraging the processor's powerful computational capabilities and intelligent power efficiency management, it delivers outstanding graphics performance and a smooth application experience at a lower power consumption.

Intel® UHD Graphics 630

Graphics Base Frequency

Graphics Base frequency refers to the rated/guaranteed graphics render clock frequency in MHz.

350 MHz

Graphics Frequency

Graphics max dynamic frequency refers to the maximum opportunistic graphics render clock frequency (in MHz) that can be supported using Intel® HD Graphics with Dynamic Frequency feature.

1.15 GHz

Graphics Video Max Memory

64 GB

4K Support

Yes | at 60Hz

DirectX Support

DirectX* Support indicates support for a specific version of Microsoft’s collection of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) for handling multimedia compute tasks.

Max Resolution (HDMI)

Max Resolution (HDMI) is the maximum resolution supported by the processor via the HDMI interface (24bits per pixel & 60Hz). System or device display resolution is dependent on multiple system design factors; actual resolution may be lower on your system.

4096 x 2160@30Hz

Max Resolution (DP)

Max Resolution (DP) is the maximum resolution supported by the processor via the DP interface (24bits per pixel & 60Hz). System or device display resolution is dependent on multiple system design factors; actual resolution may be lower on your system.

4096 x 2304@60Hz

Max Resolution (eDP - Integrated Flat Panel)

Max Resolution (Integrated Flat Panel) is the maximum resolution supported by the processor for a device with an integrated flat panel (24bits per pixel & 60Hz). System or device display resolution is dependent on multiple system design factors; actual resolution may be lower on your device.

4096 x 2304@60Hz

Number of Displays Supported

Miscellaneous

Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x)

Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x) allows one hardware platform to function as multiple “virtual” platforms. It offers improved manageability by limiting downtime and maintaining productivity by isolating computing activities into separate partitions.

Yes

Intel Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)

Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d) continues from the existing support for IA-32 (VT-x) and Itanium® processor (VT-i) virtualization adding new support for I/O-device virtualization. Intel VT-d can help end users improve security and reliability of the systems and also improve performance of I/O devices in virtualized environments.

Yes

Intel Standard Manageability (ISM)

Intel® Standard Manageability is the manageability solution for Intel vPro® Essentials platforms and is a subset of Intel® AMT with out-of-band management over Ethernet and Wi-Fi, but no KVM or new life cycle management features.

Intel® SSE4.1 | Intel® SSE4.2 | Intel® AVX2

Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology

Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology is an advanced means of enabling high performance while meeting the power-conservation needs of mobile systems. Conventional Intel SpeedStep® Technology switches both voltage and frequency in tandem between high and low levels in response to processor load. Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology builds upon that architecture using design strategies such as Separation between Voltage and Frequency Changes, and Clock Partitioning and Recovery.

Yes

Execute Disable Bit

Execute Disable Bit is a hardware-based security feature that can reduce exposure to viruses and malicious-code attacks and prevent harmful software from executing and propagating on the server or network.

Yes

Cache

CPU Cache is an area of fast memory located on the processor. Intel® Smart Cache refers to the architecture that allows all cores to dynamically share access to the last level cache.

12 MB Intel® Smart Cache

Intel AES New Instructions

Intel® AES New Instructions (Intel® AES-NI) are a set of instructions that enable fast and secure data encryption and decryption. AES-NI are valuable for a wide range of cryptographic applications, for example: applications that perform bulk encryption/decryption, authentication, random number generation, and authenticated encryption.

Yes

Intel Boot Guard

Intel® Device Protection Technology with Boot Guard helps protect the system’s pre-OS environment from viruses and malicious software attacks.

Yes

Intel Clear Video HD Technology

Intel® Clear Video HD Technology, like its predecessor, Intel® Clear Video Technology, is a suite of image decode and processing technologies built into the integrated processor graphics that improve video playback, delivering cleaner, sharper images, more natural, accurate, and vivid colors, and a clear and stable video picture. Intel® Clear Video HD Technology adds video quality enhancements for richer color and more realistic skin tones.

Yes

Intel Clear Video Technology

Yes

Intel VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)

Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT), also known as Second Level Address Translation (SLAT), provides acceleration for memory intensive virtualized applications. Extended Page Tables in Intel® Virtualization Technology platforms reduces the memory and power overhead costs and increases battery life through hardware optimization of page table management.

Yes

Intel InTru 3D Technology

Yes

Intel OS Guard

Yes

OpenGL Support

OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) is a cross-language, multi-platform API (Application Programming Interface) for rendering 2D and 3D vector graphics.

4.5

Intel Quick Sync Video

Intel® Quick Sync Video delivers fast conversion of video for portable media players, online sharing, and video editing and authoring.

Yes

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6

Single Core Score

1517

Geekbench 6

Multi Core Score

5430

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

1137

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

5387

Passmark CPU

Single Core Score

2771

Passmark CPU

Multi Core Score

12762

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core

Ryzen 7 5800U

1637 +7.9%

EPYC 7313P

1564 +3.1%

Core i5-10500

1517

Core i7-8569U

1457 -4%

Xeon Silver 4516Y+

1409 -7.1%

Geekbench 6 Multi Core

Xeon E5-2666 v3

6173 +13.7%

Xeon E-2226G

5735 +5.6%

Core i5-10500

5430

Ryzen 3 PRO 5350G

5094 -6.2%

Core i3-1215U

4817 -11.3%

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Pentium Gold G7400T

1198 +5.4%

Xeon E-2174G

1166 +2.6%

Core i5-10500

1137

Xeon W-2135

1114 -2%

Xeon W-3265M

1095 -3.7%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Core i5-11260H

5941 +10.3%

Ryzen 5 PRO 4650GE

5736 +6.5%

Core i5-10500

5387

Core i5-9600K

5113 -5.1%

Xeon D-1541

4908 -8.9%

Passmark CPU Single Core

Core i9-10900E

2922 +5.4%

Core i7-1250U

2838 +2.4%

Core i5-10500

2771

Core i7-8700B

2739 -1.2%

Xeon E-2278GE

2691 -2.9%

Passmark CPU Multi Core

Xeon E-2276G

13873 +8.7%

Core i5-1245U

13409 +5.1%

Core i5-10500

12762

Xeon E-2278GEL

12024 -5.8%

Core i3-11100HE

11289 -11.5%