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Intel Core i7-12700T

Intel Core i7-12700T

Intel Core i7-12700T: Hybrid Power for Energy-Efficient Systems

March 2025

Introduction

The Intel 12th generation processors (Alder Lake) have been revolutionary due to their hybrid architecture, combining performance and efficiency cores. The Intel Core i7-12700T is one of the most interesting representatives of this lineup, featuring 12 cores, a TDP of 35W, and DDR5 support. In 2025, this chip remains relevant for compact PCs, office systems, and workstations. Let's explore who the i7-12700T is suitable for and how to use it effectively.

1. Key Specifications: Alder Lake Architecture and Key Features

Hybrid Architecture and Process Technology

The processor is built on Alder Lake's hybrid architecture, where 8 Performance-cores (P-cores) handle heavy tasks and 4 Efficient-cores (E-cores) manage background processes. P-cores operate with Hyper-Threading (16 threads), while E-cores do so without (4 threads), totaling 12 cores and 20 threads.

The Intel 7 process technology (10nm Enhanced SuperFin) provides a balance between energy efficiency and performance. The base frequency of the P-cores is 1.4 GHz, but in turbo mode, it reaches up to 4.6 GHz. This is ideal for systems with passive or compact cooling.

Cache and Graphics: A 25 MB L3 cache accelerates multithreaded tasks, while Intel UHD Graphics 770 (base clock 300 MHz, dynamic clock 1.5 GHz) handles 4K video and less demanding games.

Performance

- Geekbench 6: 2254 (single-core), 9882 (multi-core).

- Cinebench R23: ~1800 (Single Core), ~17000 (Multi Core).

In comparison, for multithreaded tasks, the i7-12700T is close to the Ryzen 7 7700X but consumes half as much power.

2. Compatible Motherboards: LGA 1700 Socket and Chipsets

Socket and Chipsets

The processor uses the LGA 1700 socket, compatible with the following chipsets:

- H610: Budget option for office PCs. No overclocking, limited PCIe 4.0 support. Example: ASUS Prime H610M-E ($120).

- B660: Optimal choice. Supports DDR4/DDR5, PCIe 4.0. Example: MSI PRO B660M-A WiFi ($150).

- Z690/Z790: For enthusiasts. Memory overclocking, more ports. Example: Gigabyte Z790 UD AC ($220).

Selection Features:

- A top-end chipset is not necessary for the i7-12700T; even the H610 will work due to its low TDP.

- If DDR5 is needed, choose boards with XMP 3.0 support.

3. Supported Memory: DDR4 vs DDR5

The processor works with DDR4-3200 and DDR5-4800. In 2025, DDR5 has become more accessible, but DDR4 is still advantageous:

- DDR4-3200 32GB: $80–100.

- DDR5-4800 32GB: $130–160.

Recommendations:

- For office tasks and media centers — DDR4.

- For workstations (rendering, encoding) — DDR5 with low timings.

4. Power Supply: Calculating Power

With a TDP of 35W, the processor has a modest impact on power consumption, but the overall system requires:

- Without discrete graphics: PSU 300–400W (e.g., be quiet! Pure Power 11 400W, $60).

- With a graphics card (NVIDIA RTX 4060 or similar): PSU 550–650W (Corsair RM650x, $100).

Important: Even high-wattage PSUs should not be low-quality — a risk to system stability.

5. Pros and Cons of Intel Core i7-12700T

Pros:

- Energy efficiency: Ideal for mini-PCs and systems with passive cooling.

- Multithreading: 20 threads handle rendering and virtualization well.

- Integrated graphics: Runs CS:GO at 60 FPS (1080p, low settings).

Cons:

- Low base frequency: In heavy tasks without turbo boost, lags may occur.

- No overclocking: The non-K version does not support overclocking.

- Price: In 2025, the chip costs $320–350, which is more expensive than the Ryzen 7 7700 ($300).

6. Use Cases

Office and Multimedia

- Example: Build based on ASUS Prime H610M-E, 16GB DDR4, 1TB SSD. Power consumption — 50W at idle, noise — 22 dB. Suitable for document work and 4K video.

Gaming

- Example: With RTX 4060 and DDR5-4800, the processor delivers 100+ FPS in Fortnite (1080p, Epic). However, in CPU-intensive games (Cyberpunk 2077), there may be drops due to the base frequency.

Work Tasks

- Virtualization (VMware), 3D rendering (Blender), video encoding (HandBrake) — thanks to the 20 threads.

7. Comparison with Competitors

AMD Ryzen 7 7700

- Pros of AMD: Higher IPC, PCIe 5.0 support, price $300.

- Cons: 8 cores versus 12, TDP 65W.

Conclusion: For gaming, the Ryzen 7 7700 is better; for multithreading tasks, the i7-12700T excels.

Apple M2 (in mini-PC)

- Pros of Apple: Energy efficiency, integration with macOS.

- Cons: Limited software compatibility, price starting at $600.

8. Building Tips

1. Cooling: Even the stock cooler is sufficient, but for quiet operation, consider the Noctua NH-L9i ($50).

2. Case: Mini-ITX (Cooler Master NR200) or compact Micro-ATX.

3. Drives: Ensure to use NVMe SSD (e.g., Samsung 980 Pro 1TB, $120).

9. Final Conclusion: Who Should Choose the i7-12700T?

This processor is worth choosing if:

- A quiet and energy-efficient system is needed (office, home server).

- Multithreaded performance is required for work tasks.

- There are plans to use it in a compact case.

Target Audience:

- IT specialists working with virtualization.

- Enthusiasts building media centers.

- Office employees who appreciate quiet.

In 2025, the Intel Core i7-12700T remains a solid choice for those who do not need maximum clock speeds but seek a balance between power and energy consumption.

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Basic

Label Name
Intel
Platform
Desktop
Launch Date
January 2022
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.
i7-12700T
Code Name
Alder 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).
12
Total Threads
?
Where applicable, Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology is only available on Performance-cores.
20
Performance-cores
8
Efficient-cores
4
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.
4.70 GHz
Performance-core Base Frequency
1.40 GHz
Efficient-core Base Frequency
1.00 GHz
Performance-core Max Turbo Frequency
?
Maximum P-core turbo frequency derived from Intel® Turbo Boost Technology.
4.60 GHz
Efficient-core Max Turbo Frequency
?
Maximum E-core turbo frequency derived from Intel® Turbo Boost Technology.
3.40 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 Frequency
?
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. Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 frequency is the clock frequency of the CPU when running in this mode.
4.70 GHz
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.
Yes
L3 Cache
25 MB
CPU Socket
?
The socket is the component that provides the mechanical and electrical connections between the processor and motherboard.
FCLGA1700
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.
Intel 7
TDP
35 W
Processor Base Power
?
The time-averaged power dissipation that the processor is validated to not exceed during manufacturing while executing an Intel-specified high complexity workload at Base Frequency and at the junction temperature as specified in the Datasheet for the SKU segment and configuration.
35 W
Maximum Turbo Power
?
The maximum sustained (>1s) power dissipation of the processor as limited by current and/or temperature controls. Instantaneous power may exceed Maximum Turbo Power for short durations (<=10ms). Note: Maximum Turbo Power is configurable by system vendor and can be system specific.
99 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.
5.0 and 4.0
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.
20
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+4 | 2x8+4

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.
Up to DDR5 4800 MT/s Up to DDR4 3200 MT/s
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.
2
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).
76.8 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

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 770
Graphics Base Frequency
?
Graphics Base frequency refers to the rated/guaranteed graphics render clock frequency in MHz.
300 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.
1.50 GHz
DirectX Support
?
DirectX* Support indicates support for a specific version of Microsoft’s collection of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) for handling multimedia compute tasks.
12
Execution Units
?
The Execution Unit is the foundational building block of Intel’s graphics architecture. Execution Units are compute processors optimized for simultaneous Multi-Threading for high throughput compute power.
32
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 @ 60Hz
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.
7680 x 4320 @ 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.
5120 x 3200 @ 120Hz
Number of Displays Supported
4
Graphics Output
?
Graphics Output defines the interfaces available to communicate with display devices.
eDP 1.4b | DP 1.4a | HDMI 2.1

Miscellaneous

Intel Deep Learning Boost (Intel DL Boost) on CPU
?
A new set of embedded processor technologies designed to accelerate AI deep learning use cases. It extends Intel AVX-512 with a new Vector Neural Network Instruction (VNNI) that significantly increases deep learning inference performance over previous generations.
Yes
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.
25 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 Active Management Technology (AMT)
Yes
Intel Volume Management Device (VMD)
?
Intel® Volume Management Device (VMD) provides a common, robust method of hot plug and LED management for NVMe-based solid state drives.
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 Hardware Shield Eligibility
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 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 Control-Flow Enforcement Technology
?
CET - Intel Control-flow Enforcement Technology (CET) helps protect against the misuse of legitimate code snippets through return-oriented programming (ROP) control-flow hijacking attacks.
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
OpenCL Support
?
OpenCL (Open Computing Language) is a multi-platform API (Application Programming Interface) for heterogeneous parallel programming.
3.0
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
2254
Geekbench 6
Multi Core Score
9882
Geekbench 5
Single Core Score
1801
Geekbench 5
Multi Core Score
9152
Passmark CPU
Single Core Score
3647
Passmark CPU
Multi Core Score
21589

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core
Core Ultra 7 255U
2530 +12.2%
Ryzen 3 PRO 8300GE
2377 +5.5%
Core i7-12700T
2254
Core i5-12400
2170 -3.7%
Core i7-1280P
2072 -8.1%
Geekbench 6 Multi Core
Core i7-1370P
11476 +16.1%
Core i5-13400F
10676 +8%
Core i7-12700T
9882
Core i5-11600KF
9291 -6%
Ryzen 9 6900HS
8732 -11.6%
Geekbench 5 Single Core
Ryzen Threadripper PRO 7955WX
2079 +15.4%
Core i5-14490F
1911 +6.1%
Core i7-12700T
1801
Core i9-11900
1709 -5.1%
Core i9-11900KB
1655 -8.1%
Geekbench 5 Multi Core
Ryzen 5 7500F
10397 +13.6%
Core i7-11700
9636 +5.3%
Core i7-12700T
9152
Xeon w3-2425
8502 -7.1%
Core i5-1340P
8065 -11.9%
Passmark CPU Single Core
Core i5-12600
3820 +4.7%
Core i5-13600H
3731 +2.3%
Core i7-12700T
3647
Ryzen 5 7640U
3542 -2.9%
Core i3-12100F
3468 -4.9%
Passmark CPU Multi Core
Core i9-10900
23042 +6.7%
Core i9-10850K
22516 +4.3%
Core i7-12700T
21589
Core i5-12500E
20699 -4.1%
Ryzen 5 5600G
19901 -7.8%