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Intel Core i7-8700T

Intel Core i7-8700T: Review and Practical Guide for 2025

Updated: April 2025

Introduction

The Intel Core i7-8700T processor, released in 2018, is still a relevant solution for budget and energy-efficient systems. Despite its age, its specifications allow it to handle a variety of tasks—from office work to casual gaming. In this article, we will discuss who this chip suits in 2025, how to properly integrate it into a build, and what to pay attention to.

1. Key Specifications: Architecture and Performance

Coffee Lake Architecture: A Proven Platform

The i7-8700T is built on the Coffee Lake microarchitecture with a 14 nm manufacturing process. It is a six-core processor with 12 threads (Hyper-Threading) and a base frequency of 2.4 GHz (up to 4.0 GHz with Turbo Boost). The L3 cache size is 12 MB, providing quick access to frequently used data.

Energy Efficiency as a Key Feature

The processor's TDP is only 35 W, making it ideal for compact PCs, mini-PCs, and systems with passive cooling. For comparison, the standard version of the i7-8700 has a TDP of 65 W.

Performance in 2025

- Geekbench 6: 1324 (single-core), 4640 (multi-core).

- In real tasks:

- Video rendering in 1080p (Premiere Pro): ~25-30 minutes for a 10-minute video.

- Gaming: CS2 at medium settings (1080p) — 90-110 FPS; Cyberpunk 2077 (Low, 720p) — 40-50 FPS with integrated UHD 630 graphics.

Integrated Graphics

UHD Graphics 630 supports 4K@60 Hz via HDMI/DisplayPort and hardware decoding for H.265, which is useful for media centers.

2. Compatible Motherboards: Sockets and Chipsets

LGA 1151v2 Socket

The processor uses the LGA 1151v2 (Coffee Lake) socket, which is not compatible with motherboards for Intel's 6th and 7th generations (Skylake, Kaby Lake).

Recommended Chipsets

- Z370/H370: Support for memory overclocking (Z370), USB 3.1 Gen2.

- B360/H310: Budget options without overclocking.

Examples of Motherboards in 2025

- ASUS Prime H370M-Plus (price: ~$80-100): A reliable basic motherboard with M.2 and USB-C.

- Gigabyte Z370 AORUS Gaming 5 (price: ~$120-150): For enthusiasts, supports SLI/CrossFire.

Tip: New motherboards for LGA 1151v2 are no longer produced; look for them on platforms like Amazon or specialized stores (e.g., Aliexpress).

3. Supported Memory: DDR4 and Configuration Tips

Memory Types

- DDR4-2666 MHz: The maximum officially supported frequency.

- Capacity: Up to 64 GB (2 modules of 32 GB).

Recommendations

- Use a dual-channel configuration (2x8 GB or 2x16 GB) for a 15-20% performance boost.

- Example: Kingston HyperX Fury DDR4-2666 (2x8 GB) — stable operation and low latency.

Important: DDR5 and PCIe 4.0 are not supported — this is the main limitation in 2025.

4. Power Supplies: Power Calculation

Minimum Requirements

With a TDP of 35 W and using integrated graphics, a 300 W power supply is sufficient (e.g., be quiet! SFX Power 3 300W).

For Systems with a Discrete Graphics Card

- NVIDIA GTX 1660 Super level graphics card (TDP 125 W): Power supply of 450-500 W (Corsair CX450).

- Important: Consider peak power consumption (up to 80-90 W for the i7-8700T under load).

5. Pros and Cons of the Processor

Advantages

- Low power consumption: Suitable for mini-PCs and home servers.

- Multi-threading: 12 threads handle parallel tasks (streaming, rendering).

- Price: On the second-hand market in 2025 — $100-150 (new units are rare, ~$200).

Disadvantages

- No support for DDR5 and PCIe 4.0: Limits upgrades.

- Weak overclocking: The base multiplier is locked (only Turbo Boost can be increased through Power Limits).

6. Use Cases

Office and Multimedia

- Document work, browser (20+ tabs), 4K video — the processor does not struggle even when two monitors are connected.

Gaming

- With a discrete graphics card (e.g., GTX 1660 Super): Fortnite (1080p, Epic) — 60-70 FPS; GTA V (1080p, High) — 80-90 FPS.

Professional Tasks

- Photo editors (Photoshop, Lightroom): Quick processing of RAW files.

- Virtualization: Running 2-3 lightweight virtual machines (VirtualBox).

7. Comparison with Competitors

AMD Ryzen 5 5600G (2021)

- Pros: More powerful Vega 7 graphics, supports PCIe 4.0.

- Cons: Higher TDP (65 W), price ~$180 (new).

Intel Core i5-10400T (2020)

- Pros: Cheaper (~$120), similar performance.

- Cons: Only 6 threads (no Hyper-Threading).

Conclusion: The i7-8700T excels in multi-threading but falls short in modern standards (PCIe 4.0).

8. Practical Assembly Tips

Case Selection

- For passive cooling: Mini-ITX cases like Silverstone ML05B (slot for low-profile coolers).

- For gaming builds: Mid-tower with ventilation (NZXT H510).

Cooling

- The standard cooler (Intel Boxed Cooler) works fine, but for quiet operation, consider Noctua NH-L9i (~$40).

Upgrade

- Add an NVMe SSD (e.g., Samsung 970 EVO Plus 500 GB) to accelerate system boot times.

9. Final Conclusion: Who Should Choose the i7-8700T?

This processor is a good choice if:

- An energy-efficient PC for office or media center is needed.

- The budget is limited to $300-400 for the entire build.

- Multi-threading is required for light editing or virtualization.

Why not Ryzen? The Intel i7-8700T offers better prices on the second-hand market and compatibility with cheaper motherboards. However, for graphics-heavy gaming, it’s better to add a graphics card or opt for the Ryzen 5 5600G.

Conclusion

The Intel Core i7-8700T in 2025 is a tested option for those who value balance between price, performance, and energy efficiency. It will not be suitable for AAA games on ultra settings or for 8K video work but will serve as a reliable core for everyday tasks and compact systems.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Desktop

Launch Date

April 2018

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.

i7-8700T

Code Name

Coffee 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

2.40 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.

4.00 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 Frequency

4.00 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

L3 Cache

12 MB

CPU Socket

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

FCLGA1151

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

35 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.

1.20 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 2304@24Hz

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

Graphics Output

Graphics Output defines the interfaces available to communicate with display devices.

eDP/DP/HDMI/DVI

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

Source of information

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6

Single Core Score

1324

Geekbench 6

Multi Core Score

4640

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

993

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

4137

Passmark CPU

Single Core Score

2298

Passmark CPU

Multi Core Score

10234

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core

Core i3-9300T

1407 +6.3%

Ryzen 5 4600HS

1365 +3.1%

Core i7-8700T

1324

Xeon Gold 6262V

1282 -3.2%

Ryzen 7 2700X

1242 -6.2%

Geekbench 6 Multi Core

Core i7-1185G7

5320 +14.7%

Ryzen 7 PRO 1700

4937 +6.4%

Core i7-8700T

4640

Core i5-9500TE

4394 -5.3%

Xeon E5-2637 v3

4142 -10.7%

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Pentium 8500

1035 +4.2%

Core i7-10610U

1015 +2.2%

Core i7-8700T

993

Core i7-4790

968 -2.5%

Xeon Gold 6348H

947 -4.6%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Xeon Platinum 8256

4618 +11.6%

EPYC 7713

4379 +5.8%

Core i7-8700T

4137

Core i5-8400T

3941 -4.7%

Xeon E3-1240 v3

3776 -8.7%

Passmark CPU Single Core

Xeon E3-1275 v5

2354 +2.4%

Ryzen 5 2500X

2322 +1%

Core i7-8700T

2298

Athlon Gold 3150G

2263 -1.5%

Xeon E3-1505M v6

2237 -2.7%

Passmark CPU Multi Core

Core i5-10600T

11116 +8.6%

Core i5-9600KF

10727 +4.8%

Core i7-8700T

10234

Xeon E-2324G

9771 -4.5%

Core i3-10305

9291 -9.2%