AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 vs Intel Core i7-4790T Comparison

The AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 and Intel Core i7-4790T are both quad-core desktop processors, but they represent fundamentally different design eras and market positions. The Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 is a 14nm Zen part from AMD’s 1000 series, released in mid-2017, while the i7-4790T is a 22nm Haswell part from Intel, released in early 2014. Despite the i7-4790T offering twice the thread count via Hyper-Threading, the benchmark data consistently shows the AMD part pulling ahead across every single test, with a clean sweep of six head-to-head wins. The i7-4790T does retain the advantage in a few areas, such as integrated graphics, a lower TDP, and a higher boost clock, but the synthetic workload results are unambiguous.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The Cinebench suite paints a remarkably consistent picture. In Cinebench R15, the Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 scores 619 in multi-core versus the i7-4790T’s 541, a 14.4% lead. The single-core result in the same test is nearly identical in relative terms: 87 versus 76, a 14.5% advantage for the AMD part. This pattern holds across every Cinebench iteration in the data set.

Moving to Cinebench R20, the Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 posts 2582 multi-core points against the Intel chip’s 2258, again a 14.3% delta. In single-core R20, the scores are 364 and 318, respectively, with the AMD processor winning by 14.5%. The most recent test, Cinebench R23, shows the same story: the Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 scores 6148 in multi-core versus 5378 for the i7-4790T (14.3% ahead), and 868 versus 759 in single-core (14.4% ahead).

The consistency of these deltas is striking. Every single benchmark, whether it stresses one core or all four, yields a margin between 14.3% and 14.5% in favor of the AMD chip. This suggests the performance difference is not workload-specific but rather a fundamental throughput advantage. The i7-4790T’s extra four threads (8 threads total versus 4) do not compensate for the Ryzen’s higher base clock of 3.50 GHz versus 2.70 GHz, and its newer architecture.

It is worth remembering the i7-4790T has a higher boost clock of 3.90 GHz compared to the Ryzen’s 3.70 GHz. Yet, the single-core benchmarks still favor the AMD part by roughly 14.5%. This indicates that the Zen architecture’s instructions-per-clock (IPC) efficiency is substantially better than Haswell’s, allowing the lower-boosting AMD chip to outperform the Intel part even in lightly threaded tasks.

In terms of average benchmark score, the Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 sits at 1778, while the i7-4790T is at 1755. The AMD part’s nearest rival is the AMD Ryzen 3 3200GE at 1787, placing it just 0.5% below that newer chip. The Intel part’s nearest rival is the Intel Xeon E3-1241 v3 at 1756, with the i7-4790T trailing by only 0.1%. While the two CPUs are close in average score, the head-to-head Cinebench results show a decisive, consistent edge for the Ryzen 3 PRO 1300.

The Verdict

From the data alone, the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 is the superior performer in every measured workload. It wins all six head-to-head Cinebench comparisons, with margins ranging from 14.3% to 14.5%. Anyone prioritizing raw multi-threaded or single-threaded compute power—as measured by the Cinebench suite—should unequivocally select the Ryzen 3 PRO 1300. Its performance advantage is uniform and significant, not marginal.

The Intel Core i7-4790T’s case rests on factors outside raw benchmark scores. It has a lower TDP of 45 watts versus 65 watts, making it a more power-efficient choice for compact or passively cooled systems. It also includes Intel HD 4600 integrated graphics, whereas the Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 has no integrated GPU, requiring a discrete graphics card for any display output. For a user building a system without a dedicated GPU, the i7-4790T is the only viable option between the two.

However, the i7-4790T is marked as end-of-life, while the Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 is still in active production. The Ryzen also supports ECC memory, a feature absent on the Intel part, and it is multiplier-unlocked, allowing for overclocking. The i7-4790T has a locked multiplier. Given the performance sweep and the production status, the Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 is the recommended pick for any workload that can leverage a discrete GPU and values processing throughput. The i7-4790T is the fallback only for ultra-low-power or integrated-graphics scenarios.

FAQ

Q: Which processor wins in multi-core performance?

A: The AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 wins decisively. In Cinebench R23 multi-core, it scores 6148 versus the Intel Core i7-4790T’s 5378, a 14.3% advantage. The same pattern appears in R20 (2582 vs 2258) and R15 (619 vs 541).

Q: Does the Intel Core i7-4790T’s 8 threads help it beat the Ryzen in any test?

A: No. Despite having 8 threads versus the Ryzen’s 4, the Intel chip loses every head-to-head benchmark. The Ryzen wins all six Cinebench tests, with single-core margins of 14.5% and multi-core margins of 14.3% or 14.4%.

Q: Is the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 faster in single-core tests?

A: Yes, despite the Intel chip having a higher boost clock. In Cinebench R23 single-core, the Ryzen scores 868 versus the i7-4790T’s 759, a 14.4% delta. The Ryzen wins R15 single-core by 14.5% (87 vs 76) and R20 single-core by 14.5% (364 vs 318).

Q: Which processor has a lower power draw?

A: The Intel Core i7-4790T has a TDP of 45 watts, while the AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 has a TDP of 65 watts. The Intel part is more power-efficient on paper.

Q: Does either processor include integrated graphics?

A: Only the Intel Core i7-4790T includes integrated graphics, specifically Intel HD 4600. The AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 has no integrated GPU, so a discrete graphics card is required for display output.

Q: Which processor supports ECC memory?

A: The AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 supports ECC memory. The Intel Core i7-4790T does not support ECC memory.

Specification Differences

The two processors differ in several key specifications. The AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 has 4 cores and 4 threads, while the Intel Core i7-4790T has 4 cores and 8 threads. Base clocks are 3.50 GHz for the AMD and 2.70 GHz for the Intel, while boost clocks are 3.70 GHz and 3.90 GHz, respectively. The TDP is 65 watts for the AMD and 45 watts for the Intel.

Socket compatibility is entirely different: the AMD part uses AMD Socket AM4, while the Intel part uses Intel Socket 1150. Memory support also diverges, with the AMD supporting DDR4 and the Intel supporting DDR3. The memory bandwidth figures are 42.7 GB/s for the AMD and 25.6 GB/s for the Intel. ECC memory is supported on the AMD but not on the Intel. The AMD has a fully unlocked multiplier, while the Intel’s multiplier is locked. The Intel part includes Intel HD 4600 integrated graphics, whereas the AMD has none. Production status is Active for the AMD and End-of-life for the Intel.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two parts is substantial. The AMD Ryzen 3 PRO 1300 is built on the Zen architecture, codenamed Zen, using a 14 nm process node from GlobalFoundries. It integrates 4,800 million transistors on a 213 mm² die. The Intel Core i7-4790T is based on the Haswell architecture, using a 22 nm process node from Intel, with 1,400 million transistors on a 177 mm² die.

Cache hierarchies differ per core. The AMD part has 96 KB of L1 cache per core and 512 KB of L2 cache per core, while the Intel part has 64 KB of L1 and 256 KB of L2 per core. Both share 8 MB of L3 cache across all cores. The AMD part is a desktop market segment part from the Ryzen 3 generation, while the Intel part is a desktop part from the Core i7 generation. The AMD supports dual-channel memory with a 42.7 GB/s bandwidth, while the Intel supports dual-channel with 25.6 GB/s. The Intel part includes a PCIe Gen 3, 16-lane configuration (CPU only), while the AMD part’s PCIe details are not specified in the data. The release dates are also far apart, with the AMD launching in June 2017 and the Intel in April 2014.