Intel's Core i5 Rocket Lake CPUs which include the Core i5-11600KF & Core i5-11400F 6 Core chips have been benchmarked and their performance results have leaked out over at Chinese Chiphell Forums (via Harukaze5719). Both CPUs are part of the 11th Gen Core i5 family and will feature 6 core & 12 threads each.
Intel Core i5-11600KF & Core i5-11400F 6 Core Rocket Lake Desktop CPU Benchmarks Leaked
The Intel Core i5 Rocket Lake CPUs are going to be the choice for mainstream gamers. The CPUs will compete against the AMD Ryzen 5 lineup which also features 6 cores and 12 threads and has the 5600X and the 5600 as the main competition. Following are the specifications of both CPUs in detail.
Intel Core i5-11600KF 6 Core & 12 Thread Rocket Lake Desktop CPU
The Intel Core i5-11600K is a 6 core chip with 12 threads. The processor should be going up against the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X which is a phenomenal CPU in its own right. The Core i5-11600K is said to feature a clock speed of 4.9 GHz on a single and 4.6 GHz across all cores. Do note that TVB won't be available on SKUs below the Core i9 models so we shouldn't expect an extended frequency limit on Core i7 and Core i5 SKUs. The chip will feature 12 MB of L3 cache and 3 MB of L2 cache.
Now the main proving ground for this chip against the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X will be its performance to price value. The Ryzen 5 5600X with a $299 US MSRP is slightly higher in terms of pricing when we compare it to its predecessor. The Core i5-11600K on the other hand will be replacing the Core i5-10600K which has a retail price of around $260 US.
If Intel sticks to its existing price strategy, then the Core i5-11600K could indeed become a hot selling chip in the mainstream gaming market. With that said, we also have to take into account the availability of the Core i5-11600K. Technically, mainstream SKUs aren't affected a lot by supply issues as is the case with the Ryzen 5 5600X but a small delay in stock could result in Intel missing an opportunity to create a dent in AMD's Ryzen 5 segment. Consumers have already seen what AMD delivered as a successor to its Ryzen 5 3600X so now it's time to see what the Core i5-10600K's successor can do.
Intel Core i5-11400F 6 Core & 12 Thread Rocket Lake Desktop CPU
The Intel Core i5-11400F is a locked & non-K 11th Gen Rocket Lake Desktop CPU. Intel isn't moving away from locked chips anytime soon as doing so will gobble up sales of their K-series SKUs. The Core i5-11400 as such will be a 6 core and 12 thread chip with a similar core config as the Core i5-11600K but lower clock speeds of 4.4 GHz (1-core boost) and 4.2 GHz (all-core boost) for the Core i5-11400.
The chip will feature a standard 65W PL1 and 125W PL2 power limit. While the CPU technically does not support overclocking, motherboard vendors will be incorporating BIOS and features to raise the power limits of non-K SKUs for Rocket Lake chips. This would yield a higher base and more stable boost frequencies. So overall, you'll be getting performance similar to the K-series SKUs at a lower price.
Intel Core i5-11600KF & Core i5-11400F Rocket Lake 6 Core CPU Performance Benchmarks
The Intel Core i5-11600KF and Core i5-11400F lack integrated graphics hence they have the 'F' label. For testing, the tester used the Gigabyte Z490 AORUS Ultra motherboard with the latest BIOS, a 16 GB memory kit comprised of DIMMs rated at DDR4-3600 (CL17-19-19-39), and a 360mm AIO liquid cooler that has a 350W cooling capability. The cooler should be enough to handle both chips since the Core i5-11600KF peaks out with a PL2 rating of around 220-225W. The benchmarks can be seen below:
As for power and temperatures, the tester also tested both Intel Rocket Lake Desktop CPUs within AIDA64. The Core i5-11600KF peaked out at 210W with a max reported temperature of 85C while the Core i5-11400 peaked out at 145W with a max reported temperature of 70C. The tester also tried to overclock the Core i5-11600KF but the BIOS or the chip (ES sample) wasn't stable and could only manage 4.8 GHz at 1.325V which resulted in higher temperatures and power draw.
In addition to these tests, YouTuber, Tobi's hardware corner, has simulated the performance of the Core i5-11600K but disabling two cores on his Intel Core i7-11700K CPU. The Core i7 still features a larger cache than the Core i5-11600K but it provides you a good preview of the Core i5-11600K vs an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X CPU. The user-tested several games with both CPUs clocked in at the same 4.6 GHz speeds and Rocket Lake turned out to be faster than the Zen 3 offering. You can see the full video of the tests below:
The Intel Rocket Lake Desktop CPUs launch on the 30th of March however pre-orders will be open on the 16th of March. Do note that reviews for the chip will also not be published until the 30th of March.
Intel 11th Gen Rocket Lake Desktop CPU Lineup Specs (Preliminary):
| CPU Name | Cores / Threads | Base Clock | Boost Clock (1-Core) | Boost Clock (All-Core) | Cache | Graphics | TDP (PL1) | TDP (PL2) | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core i9-11900K(F) | 8 / 16 | 3.50 GHz | 5.30 GHz | 4.80 GHz | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 125W | 251W | $539 US (K) $513 US (KF) |
| Core i9-11900(F) | 8 / 16 | 2.50 GHz | 5.20 GHz | 4.70 GHz | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 65W | 224W | $439 US $422 US (F) |
| Core i9-11900T | 8 / 16 | 1.50 GHz | 4.90 GHz | 3.70 GHz | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 35W | 115W | $439 US |
| Core i7-11700K(F) | 8 / 16 | 3.60 GHz | 5.00 GHz | 4.60 GHz | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 125W | 251W | $399 US (K) $374 US (F) |
| Core i7-11700(F) | 8 / 16 | 2.50 GHz | 4.90 GHz | 4.40 GHz | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 65W | 224W | $323 US $298 US (F) |
| Core i7-11700T | 8 / 16 | 1.40 GHz | 4.60 GHz | 3.60 GHz | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 35W | 115W | $323 US |
| Core i5-11600K(F) | 6 /12 | 3.90 GHz | 4.90 GHz | 4.60 GHz | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 125W | 224W? | $262 US (K) $237 US (KF) |
| Core i5-11600 | 6 /12 | 2.80 GHz | 4.80 GHz | 4.30 GHz | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 65W | 154W | $213 US |
| Core i5-11600T | 6 /12 | 1.70 GHz | 4.10 GHz | 3.50 GHz | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 35W | 92W | $213 US |
| Core i5-11500 | 6 /12 | 2.70 GHz | 4.60 GHz | 4.20 GHz | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 65W | 154W | $192 US |
| Core i5-11500T | 6 /12 | 1.50 GHz | 3.90 GHz | 3.40 GHz | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 Cores) | 35W | 92W | $192 US |
| Core i5-11400(F) | 6 /12 | 2.60 GHz | 4.40 GHz | 4.20 GHz | 12 MB | Intel Xe 24 EU (192 Cores) | 65W | 154W | $182 US $157 US (F) |
| Core i5-11400T | 6 /12 | 1.30 GHz | 3.70 GHz | 3.30 GHz | 12 MB | Intel Xe 24 EU (192 Cores) | 35W | 92W | $182 US |
