Do Not Buy: Intel i5-10400 CPU Review & Benchmarks vs. 3300X, 3600, 10600K (ft. 2666 & 3200 RAM)

We're reviewing Intel's new Core i5-10400 CPU and benchmarking it with 3200MHz and 2666MHz memory, mostly vs. the AMD Ryzen 3300X, 3600, and Intel 10600K.

This benchmark and review of the Intel Core i5-10400 CPU looks at Intel's cheapest available 10-series ("10th Gen") CPU. There will be more to follow, like the upcoming Intel i3-10320, 10300, and 10100 CPUs, but the 10400 was the floor of available CPUs on launch day. Other launches include the 10900K, 10700K, and 10600K, all of which we've already reviewed separately and can be found on the channel (or below). We paid $195 for the i5-10400 from Newegg on launch day, and it therefore compares the most directly with the R5 3600 from a pricing perspective. From a performance perspective, the best points of comparison include the R3 3300X, R5 3600, and i5-10600K (especially with an overclock), which leave the i5-1040 flanked heavily and without many reasons to purchase it. The i5-10400 also loses a significant portion of its performance when run with the more realistic clock speeds (and timings, for that matter, that are associated with lower-end memory). The Z490 motherboards can run XMP with higher speeds, but it's the lower-end B-series and H-series motherboards that make sense to couple with the 10400, and those won't support the higher speeds found on Z490. For this reason, we tested both configurations (one for standardized comparison, one for realistic comparison). Watch this review for more information on the performance comparisons!

OTHER INTEL 10-SERIES REVIEWS & OC CONTENT

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TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Up to Speed on i5-10400
01:36 - Memory Selection (2666MHz vs. 3200MHz)
04:24 - 1T Frequency Expectations for i5-10400
05:17 - i5-10400 All-Core Frequency
05:40 - Three Kingdoms Campaign 1080p Benchmark
07:07 - Hitman 2 1080p CPU Benchmarks
08:09 - F1 Best 1080p & 1440p Gaming CPUs 2020
09:37 - Shadow of the Tomb Raider 1080p CPU Benchmarks
10:25 - Grand Theft Auto V CPU Benchmarks
11:10 - Red Dead Redemption 2 Benchmarks
11:50 - Three Kingdoms Battle Benchmark
12:26 - Assassin's Creed CPU Benchmarks
13:04 - Blender 2.81 CPU Benchmarks 2020
14:18 - Adobe Premiere Video Editing & Rendering CPU Benchmarks
15:09 - 7-Zip Compression & Decompression
15:45 - Chromium Code Compile CPU Benchmarks
16:11 - i5-10400 Power Consumption Benchmarks
16:54 - i5-10400 vs. 3300X, 3600, 10600K Conclusion

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Editorial, Testing: Steve Burke
Video: Keegan Gallick

[GamersNexus]

Looks like Amazon does have it for $182 now (was $195 when we bought), but $13 doesn't change our stance.

[LexaSkye]

"Do Not Buy: Intel i5-10400"
literally 10100F and 10400F are best seller right now, cause 3600/3300X/3100 being overprice.
atleast from where i live.

[nO_dNAL]

I really didn't expect such a drastic difference in performance between the two memory configurations

[alanburkhart]

I really enjoy your vids.
I just received your mouse pad and I love it.
I am a 62-year-old computer enthusiast. The last computer I built has a Ryzen 3900X, 32 gigs of 3600 speed memory, a Nvidia RTX 2070, Gigabyte X570 Aorus Master motherboard, and of course RGB… although I do not leave it on that much. I also have two Gen 4 NVME drives. I am not a big gamer, but the kids we have custody of likes to play a lot.

[SeveruSniper]

This should have been the one to fight against 3600 for the "overall price/performance" crown, but Intel keeps doing exactly what led them to the actual situation. Allowing overclocking in every segment of the market should be a must if they want to compete against AMD. Price should be the same or lower at least for people to even consider it since with AMD they can just upgrade from their old motherboard and use the stock cooler (I wouldn't use Intel stock cooler even if its not a "K" part). The same arguments release after release, I know, but they keep doing it. At least they brought Hyperthreading to this generation.

[CasualGamers]

The 10400F msrp is 25 usd lower, which puts it slightly cheaper than the 3600. However, this would make a lot more sense if Intel would cut the crap with the RAM frequency on lower end boards and these new socket changes to sell new chipsets.

[ZDY]

*Very ironic that now with the current pricing, 10400f is the clear winner for best value builds, yes even better than a Ryzen 3600 build*
Goes to show that picking sides don't matter. Price to performance and value incentive does

[MafiaboysWorld]

I reckon you should name all Intel's this way from now on Steve. 10-4, 10-6, 10-7, 10-9. Atleast the worst you have to say is the 10-9-KF.

[drewnashty]

Titles like this are a bit misleading for noobs and plebs skimming through search results, as they probably aren't going to watch the full video to understand the what, why and when. Right now an i5-10400f is a much better choice at $166, especially if you put the extra $100 it costs for an i5-10600k towards a better video card. AMD's similarly ranked CPUs don't compete if they aren't available.. 'Tis the same with k-model i5's.

[pofeed]

You have to love how Intel's engineers actually pull off some small miracles with keeping 14nm as relevant as it is performance wise, but they still manage to shoot themselves in the foot with their pricing and platform limitations.

[insecure_tiger]

november when the i5 10400 is $50 cheaper then the ryzen 5 3600 PepeLaugh

[Wilqu]

intel is now cheaper, good for consumers

[christopherbohling]

You've been fantastic getting so many reviews out in just a few days, now go get some sleep!

[tehcompbuilder]

Mind blowing that the memory speed increase is causing such a large gain in gaming performance.

[rafita]

The 10400 is slapping now with a b560 motherboard and a 150$ price

[shibasss]

It would be really cool if intel allowed memory overclocking in their B chipsets, at least just setting xmp profiles if they still want some segmentation.

[jaydnisevil]

Nobody does testing like you guys, the levels you go to for accuracy is unparalleled.

Wish you did fan reviews/comparisons (Noise normalised water temps) etc :(

[gamewizard]

If you're upgrading from an older system, like a 7th generation Intel or older, and you're on a budget, the i5 10400 is not a horrible option. In many instances, it can run 1:1 with an i7 8700. There are still a lot of people using machines with single thread i3's and i5's or older i7's like the 3770 or 4790. Something like a pre-built with the 10400 would be a vast improvement over what they already have for not very much money. For a power user with money to burn, I agree that it's crap, but the majority of people don't fall into that category and the 10400 would be enough to make them happy for what they would use it for.

[infinitelyexplosive]

well at least for this review you only have to say "hundred" instead of "hundred kay"

[jonahhekmatyar]

Wow, the first time youtube has deemed fit to actually notify of a new vid