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Intel Core i3-9100F

Intel Core i3-9100F: Budget Processor for Basic Tasks and Gaming in 2025

Introduction

Even several years after its release, the Intel Core i3-9100F remains a popular choice for budget builds. This processor, despite lacking hyper-threading and integrated graphics, demonstrates reliable performance in everyday tasks. In this article, we will explore its features, compatibility, and relevance in 2025.

1. Key Specifications: Architecture and Performance

Architecture and Process Technology

The Core i3-9100F is based on the Coffee Lake architecture (14 nm). It belongs to the fourth generation of Intel processors, optimized for energy efficiency. The chip is equipped with 4 cores and 4 threads, a base clock speed of 3.6 GHz, and a turbo boost of up to 4.2 GHz. It has an L3 cache size of 6 MB.

Performance

- Geekbench 6: 1371 points (single-core), 3661 (multi-core). In comparison, the Ryzen 3 3300X (4 cores/8 threads) scores approximately 1450/4400 points.

- In games (such as CS2 or Fortnite), when paired with a graphics card like the NVIDIA GTX 1650, the processor achieves 60-90 FPS on medium settings.

- Office applications (Excel, Word) run smoothly, with rendering in Blender (for a simple scene) taking about 20-25 minutes.

Key Features

- Supports DDR4-2400 memory (officially).

- Intel technologies: Turbo Boost 2.0, Optane Memory.

2. Compatible Motherboards: Sockets and Chipsets

LGA 1151 Socket (Coffee Lake)

The processor is compatible with 300 series chipsets:

- H310/B365 — budget motherboards (e.g., ASUS Prime H310M-K, $60-80). Suitable for basic builds without overclocking.

- B360/H370 — optimal choice (MSI B360M Mortar, $90-110). Support for USB 3.1 and M.2 NVMe is available.

- Z390 — for enthusiasts (Gigabyte Z390 UD, $120-150). Memory overclocking is possible, but the i3-9100F itself does not overclock.

Choosing Considerations

- BIOS Update: Some motherboards require a firmware update to work with the 9th generation processors.

- PCIe 3.0: All motherboards support the standard, which is sufficient for modern graphics cards (e.g., RTX 4060).

3. Supported Memory Types

DDR4: Frequency and Configurations

- Maximum Frequency: DDR4-2400 (on H310/B360 chipsets). On Z390, it can be overclocked to DDR4-2666.

- Dual-channel mode is recommended: 2×8 GB DDR4-2400 will increase performance by 15-20% in games.

- Compatibility: Most modules (Corsair Vengeance LPX, Kingston HyperX Fury).

DDR5 is not supported — this is a limitation of the LGA 1151 platform.

4. Power Supply Recommendations

Power Calculation

- Processor TDP: 65 W.

- Example Build: i3-9100F + GTX 1660 Super (125 W) + 2 SSD + 16 GB RAM.

- Recommended PSU: 450-500 W (for example, be quiet! System Power 9 500W, $55).

Selection Criteria

- 80 Plus Bronze certification or higher.

- Overload and short circuit protection (AeroCool, Cooler Master).

5. Pros and Cons

Pros

- Price: $80-100 (new, 2025).

- Energy Efficiency: Ideal for compact cases.

- Sufficient Gaming Performance with a graphics card up to $250.

Cons

- 4 Threads: Weak in multi-threaded tasks (streaming, rendering).

- No Integrated Graphics: A discrete graphics card is mandatory.

- Outdated Platform: No upgrade path to 10th-11th generation Intel.

6. Use Cases

Gaming

- Example: GTA V, Rainbow Six Siege, Dota 2 — 60-100 FPS on medium settings with a GPU like the RX 6600.

- Limitations: In CPU-intensive games (Cyberpunk 2077, Starfield) drops to 40 FPS may occur.

Work Tasks

- Office Applications: Ideal for Word, Excel, and browsers with 10+ tabs open.

- Photo Editing Software: Photoshop, Lightroom — comfortable to work with, but filters are applied slower than on Ryzen 5.

Multimedia

- Streaming video (4K YouTube), editing in DaVinci Resolve (1080p timeline).

7. Comparison with Competitors

AMD Ryzen 3 3300X

- Price: $100-120.

- Pros: 8 threads, unlocked multiplier.

- Cons: Harder to find in stock, higher TDP (65 W vs. 65 W — the same).

Intel Core i5-9400F

- Price: $130-150.

- Pros: 6 cores/6 threads, better in multitasking.

- Cons: 30-40% more expensive.

Conclusion: The i3-9100F excels in the budget segment, but for multi-threaded tasks, it’s better to pay extra for the Ryzen 3 3300X.

8. Practical Assembly Tips

- Motherboard: ASRock B365M-HDV ($70) + 16 GB DDR4-2400.

- Graphics Card: NVIDIA GTX 1660 Super (used — $120, new — $200).

- Cooling: The stock cooler is sufficient, but for quieter operation, a DeepCool Gammaxx 400 ($20) can be purchased.

- Storage: 500 GB NVMe SSD (Kingston NV2, $35).

Common Mistakes

- Purchasing a motherboard with a Z390 chipset for the i3-9100F is excessive.

- Using single-channel memory reduces FPS in games.

9. Final Takeaway: Who Should Consider the i3-9100F?

This processor is a good choice if:

- Budget is tight ($300-400 for the whole build).

- You need a PC for study, office work, or light gaming.

- Multi-threading is not required (streaming, 3D modeling).

Alternatives:

- For future-proof gaming — Ryzen 5 5500 ($130).

- For minimalism — Intel Pentium Gold G7400 ($90, but with 2 cores).

In 2025, the i3-9100F remains a niche solution, but its price and reliability justifies the choice of budget-conscious users.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Desktop

Launch Date

April 2019

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.

i3-9100F

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

3.60 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.

4.20 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 Frequency

4.20 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.

L3 Cache

6 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

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.

DDR4-2400

Max Memory Size

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

64 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).

37.5 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.

Yes

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.

6 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 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 OS Guard

Yes

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6

Single Core Score

1371

Geekbench 6

Multi Core Score

3661

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

1042

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

3301

Passmark CPU

Single Core Score

2505

Passmark CPU

Multi Core Score

6743

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core

Core i3-10105F

1461 +6.6%

Xeon W-3335

1410 +2.8%

Core i3-9100F

1371

Xeon Gold 6144

1332 -2.8%

Core i7-6700

1285 -6.3%

Geekbench 6 Multi Core

Core i3-9300T

4127 +12.7%

Ryzen Embedded R2544

3873 +5.8%

Core i3-9100F

3661

Core i5-10310U

3414 -6.7%

Xeon W-11555MRE

3200 -12.6%

Geekbench 5 Single Core

EPYC 7543P

1086 +4.2%

Xeon Platinum 8352V

1066 +2.3%

Core i3-9100F

1042

Core i5-9500T

1021 -2%

Athlon Gold 3150GE

1002 -3.8%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Core i5-8257U

3574 +8.3%

Core i5-5675C

3437 +4.1%

Core i3-9100F

3301

Core i7-4770HQ

3181 -3.6%

Core i7-8665U

3056 -7.4%

Passmark CPU Single Core

Core i9-9900X

2574 +2.8%

Core i7-8559U

2547 +1.7%

Core i3-9100F

2505

Xeon Gold 6348

2459 -1.8%

Xeon E3-1245 v6

2426 -3.2%

Passmark CPU Multi Core

Xeon D-1539

7175 +6.4%

Xeon W3680

6980 +3.5%

Core i3-9100F

6743

Xeon W3670

6400 -5.1%

Core i3-10100TE

6237 -7.5%