This i7-4790 is a fourth-gen Intel Hyper-Threading processor, having been released around mid-2014. It features a base clock speed of 3.6GHz, a turbo clock speed of 4GHz for one of the cores and 3.8GHz across all four cores.
The TDP is a little higher than the sixth-gen i7 processors, those being around 65W as opposed to this model's 85W. The integrated GPU in this case is an Intel HD 4600, which manages a base clock speed of 350MHz and a turbo boost speed of 1.2GHz – exactly the same as the i5-4690K that came out at around the same time.
As you can see, this isn’t the unlocked K-version of the i7-4790. The K-model offers a higher base clock speed and, of course, it’s unlocked, so you can push it to higher overclocked frequencies than you would ever be able to achieve from this model.
The benefit of the i7-4790 is of course the higher base clock speeds over the i5 processors. 4GHz through the turbo function isn’t something to take lightly, even in this day and age, but the £250 price is still high.
In terms of performance, the i7-4790 looks pretty good. The PassMark 8.0 overall CPU score was an impressive 10,018, while the single-thread score was also a pretty good 2,298. Meanwhile, the Cinebench R15 single-core score was a rather lacklustre 148, but that improved with the multi-core test which was 730.
The integrated GPU on the i7-4790 may not be the best available, but you can’t argue with the fact that this is a processor with a considerable amount of grunt behind it. With that in mind, it’ll make for a great gaming CPU or for other processorintensive tasks.
Although this is one of the highest performing processors this week, we do have a couple of reservations. The first is the fact that this is, in terms of the processor timeline, old technology. As with the i5-4690K, you’re buying into fourth-gen technology, and while that isn’t too much of a problem at present, it could become a thorn in your side at a later date.
The second problem we have is with the price. Even though it’s a good performer, £250 seems a little steep for two-year old technology, plus for around £40 less you could get the i5-4790K and a slight overclock to match the performance benchmarks.
On the whole, though, the Intel i7-4790 is a decent enough processor. It’ll take everything you throw, and it’ll no doubt be around for a while yet.