Intel Core i5-6500TE vs Intel Core i7-2700K Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark record for these two processors splits cleanly along workload type. The Intel Core i7-2700K wins six of the eight recorded head-to-head tests, all of them in the Cinebench series. The Intel Core i5-6500TE wins the remaining two, both Geekbench tests. The margin of victory is consistently larger on the Geekbench side, but the frequency of wins belongs to the older i7.

In Cinebench R15 multicore, the i7-2700K scores 486 against the i5-6500TE's 428, a 13.6% advantage. The same picture appears in Cinebench R20 multicore: 2029 versus 1787, a 13.5% gap. Cinebench R23 multicore follows at 4833 to 4255, a 13.6% difference. The single-core Cinebench results are nearly identical in proportional terms. R15 single-core shows 68 vs 60, a 13.3% lead. R20 single-core shows 286 vs 252, a 13.5% lead. R23 single-core shows 682 vs 600, a 13.7% lead. So across every Cinebench iteration, the i7-2700K maintains a remarkably consistent 13.3% to 13.7% edge.

The Geekbench tests reverse the outcome substantially. In Geekbench multicore, the i5-6500TE scores 2749 against the i7-2700K's 2294, a 16.6% advantage. In Geekbench single-core, the i5-6500TE scores 1062 against the i7-2700K's 672, a 36.7% advantage. That single-core Geekbench gap is the largest relative difference between any two results in the head-to-head set. The i7-2700K's 672 single-core Geekbench score is less than two-thirds of the i5-6500TE's 1062.

Looking at the overall average benchmark score, the two CPUs land close together. The i7-2700K averages 1419 points, while the i5-6500TE averages 1399 points. Both sit at the 37th percentile among all CPUs in the database. The nearest rivals for the i7-2700K include the AMD Opteron 4274 HE at 1420 (0% delta), the Intel Core i7-3720QM at 1421 (-0.1%), and the Intel Core i7-3840QM at 1416 (0.2%). The nearest rivals for the i5-6500TE include the Intel Xeon E3-1220 v5 at 1401 (-0.1%), the Intel Xeon E-2104G at 1402 (-0.2%), and the Intel Pentium Gold G7400TE at 1404 (-0.4%). These are essentially equal average performers, though their benchmark profiles are very different.

FAQ

Q: Which processor wins the majority of benchmark comparisons?

A: The Intel Core i7-2700K wins six of the eight head-to-head tests. The Intel Core i5-6500TE wins the other two. The i7-2700K leads all Cinebench R15, R20, and R23 workloads.

Q: How large is the i7-2700K's lead in Cinebench multicore tests?

A: The i7-2700K leads by 13.6% in R15 multicore (486 to 428) and 13.5% in R20 multicore (2029 to 1787). In R23 multicore, the lead is 13.6% (4833 to 4255).

Q: How large is the i5-6500TE's lead in Geekbench?

A: The i5-6500TE leads Geekbench multicore by 16.6% (2749 to 2294) and Geekbench single-core by 36.7% (1062 to 672). The single-core margin is the largest any either direction in the whole comparison.

Q: Do the two CPUs have the same average benchmark score?

A: No, but the difference is tiny. The i7-2700K averages 1419 points, and the i5-6500TE averages 1399 points. Both sit at the 37th percentile among all CPUs.

Q: Which CPU has more threads?

A: The i7-2700K has 8 threads (4 cores with Hyper-Threading), while the i5-6500TE has 4 threads (4 cores without Hyper-Threading). The thread advantage likely explains the i7-2700K's lead in multi-threaded Cinebench runs.

Q: Which processor is newer?

A: The i5-6500TE was released on 2015-10-10, while the i7-2700K was released on 2011-10-23. The i5-6500TE is four years newer in release date, yet it loses most benchmarks.

Where Each One Wins

The Intel Core i7-2700K wins every Cinebench test across R15, R20, and R23, both single-core and multi-core. This is a consistent sweep of the Cinebench rendering family. The margin is stable at roughly 13.5% in all six tests, which indicates a uniform advantage in that workload, not a workload-specific quirk. Users running Cinebench-like rendering or 3D content creation tasks will see the i7-2700K come out ahead every time. The 8-thread configuration of the i7-2700K versus the 4-thread configuration of the i5-6500TE is the most plausible reason for the multi-core wins, though the single-core Cinebench wins also show an advantage independent of thread count.

The Intel Core i5-6500TE wins both Geekbench tests. Its Geekbench single-core score is 1062, which is 36.7% higher than the i7-2700K's 672. That is a massive leap, far bigger than any Cinebench delta. Its Geekbench multi-core score is 2749, which is 16.6% higher than the i7-2700K's 2294. The i5-6500TE's Geekbench wins are more decisive in relative terms than the i7-2700K's Cinebench wins. For workloads that resemble Geekbench patterns, the i5-6500TE is clearly the better choice.

The average benchmark score puts them nearly neck and neck: 1419 for the i7-2700K and 1422 for the i5-6500TE. That difference of 3 points is within the noise of a single benchmark. The percentile ranking is identical at 37% for both. So in aggregate, the two CPUs are equivalent performers, are at the same level of competition, but they trade wins by workload family.

Specification Differences

The two processors differ in several core specifications. The i7-2700K has a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 3.90 GHz. The i5-6500TE has a base clock of 2.30 GHz and a boost clock of 3.30 GHz. The i7-2700K runs at higher clocks in both states, which contributes to its Cinebench wins.

The i7-2700K has 8 threads; the i5-6500TE has 4 threads. Both have 4 physical cores. The i7-2700K allows an unlocked multiplier; the i5-6500TE does not. The i7-2700K has a 95 W TDP, while the i5-6500TE has a 35 W TDP. The i5-6500TE draws significantly less power.

The memory support differs: the i7-2700K supports DDR3 only, while the i5-6500TE supports both DDR3 and DDR4. The memory bus is dual-channel for both, but bandwidth differs. The i7-2700K has 21.3 GB/s, the i5-6500TE has 34.1 GB/s. The i5-6500TE also supports PCIe Gen 3 with 16 lanes, while the i7-2700K supports PCIe Gen 2 with 16 lanes.

The integrated graphics differ: the i7-2700K has Intel HD 3000, the i5-6500TE has HD Graphics 530. Neither supports ECC memory. The socket differs completely: the i7-2700K uses Intel Socket 1155, the i5-6500TE uses Intel Socket 1151. The part numbers are SR0DG for the i7-2700K and SR2LR for the i5-6500TE.

Architecture Differences

The i7-2700K is built on Sandy Bridge architecture, released in 2011. The i5-6500TE is built on Skylake architecture, released in 2015. The manufacturing process shifts from 32 nm to 14 nm. The i7-2700K has 1,160 million transistors on a 216 mm² die. The i5-6500TE's transistor count is not recorded, but its die size is 122 mm². That is a difference of 94 mm² in die area, which the Skylake process shrinks considerably.

The cache hierarchy differs in L3 only. Both have 64 KB L1 per core and 256 KB L2 per core. The i7-2700K has 8 MB of shared L3 cache, while the i5-6500TE has 6 MB of shared L3 cache. The i7-2700K holds a 2 MB L3 advantage, which may feed its Cinebench performance.

The memory controller supports different technologies. The i7-2700K supports DDR3 only, with a 21.3 GB/s bandwidth. The i5-6500TE supports DDR3 and DDR4, with a 34.1 GB/s bandwidth. The i5-6500TE has 60% more memory bandwidth. That advantage shows up in Geekbench, which often stresses memory access.

The PCIe generation also differs. The i7-2700K is Gen 2, the i5-6500TE is Gen 3. Both run 16 lanes from the CPU. The i5-6500TE also has a different integrated GPU: HD Graphics 530 compared to Intel HD 3000.

Neither CPU supports ECC memory. Both are end-of-life production status. The i7-2700K was released on 2011-10-23, the i5-6500TE on 2015-10-10. The i7-2700K has a launch MSRP of $332; the i5-6500TE has a launch MSRP of $192.

The architectural gap between Sandy Bridge and Skylake is large, but the benchmark data shows that the newer process (14 nm vs 32 nm) and the higher memory bandwidth only translate into wins in Geekbench. The older Sandy Bridge design, with its higher clock speeds and 8 threads, still dominates the Cinebench family. The process node difference explains the i5-6500TE's much lower TDP (35 W vs 95 W), but that power efficiency does not convert to wins in rendering workloads.