Intel Core i5-12600K (6P+4E/16T, 3.70 GHz, 20MB Cache, LGA1700, 125W), TRAY

Intel Alder Lake 12th generation processors, including the Core i5-12600K, went on sale in November 2021, bringing new enthusiasm to the x86 processor segment. Taking its cue from the ARM big.LITTLE heterogeneous computing architecture, which has proven its utility in smartphones and tablets for more than 5 years, the Core i5-12600K chips also host 6 Performance or high-performance cores, in addition to 4 Efficient power-efficient cores. This combination allows the processor to run more efficiently, as the P-core is responsible for the highest performance on complex tasks, while the E-core handles background processes in the operating system and ensures low power consumption during web browsing and other less demanding activities.

The Core i5-12600K processor features a built-in 20 MB cache as well as 6 P and 4 E cores. In one of the most objective processor performance tests, CineBench R23, the Core i5-12600K completely destroys its Rocket Lake i5-11600K predecessor by a 60% margin with over 17,000 points. But it doesn't stop there, as i5-12600K also makes room for the 11th generation Core i7-11700K ( 17%) and AMD Ryzen 7 5800X ( 13%) octa-core models!

Core i5-12600K performance in PC games

TheAlder Lake architecture has seen the most dramatic performance improvement in years and the Core i5-12600K is a prime example. In TechSpot's 10 PC games tests, Core i5-12600K average FPS scores outperform Intel's 10th and 11th generation Core i5 and Core i7 models, as well as AMD's 5000 series bestseller Ryzen 5 5600X.

Core i5-12600K photo processing

Thanks to an improved architecture and four newly available Efficient cores, the most popular Adobe photo processing applications Photoshop and Lightroom Core i5-12600K perform on par with the best 12-core AMD Ryzen 9 5900X and 16-core 5950X processors, while outperforming Intel 11th generation Core i7 and i9 processors by up to 20%.

Core i5-12600K in video processing

The Core i5-12600K is technically a 6-core processor, but the heterogeneous Alder Lake architecture with 4 small Efficient cores makes it incomparably better than the previous generation Core i5-11600K. In Adobe Premiere Pro, the popular video processing software, it outperforms the 11th generation Core i9-11900K by almost 10%. The 12-core Ryzen 9 5900X also outperformed the Core i5-12600K, but fell short of the 16-core 5950X by less than 3 percent. Impressive performance for a Core i5 processor in this price range!

Core i5-12600K power consumption

The Intel Core i5-12600K hexa-core processor consumes 125W of power at its 3.70 GHz base frequency. As befits all K-labelled models, the processor's P cores can increase their operating frequency up to 4.90 GHz during complex operations with the help of TurboBoost technology. Under these conditions, the Core i5-12600K processor can reach an actual power consumption of 150W, which is determined by the manufacturer's PL2 threshold.

TechSpot's measurements show that a computer with a Core i5-12600K processor is about as power-efficient as an 11th generation Intel Core i5-11600K and AMD Ryzen 7 5800X. These measurements do not include the video card, so with a powerful NVIDIA GeForce or AMD Radeon GPU the consumption of the PC can exceed even the 600W limit, so when building a Core i5-12600K CPU based PC we recommend a power supply with at least 700W of power.

To keep the Core i5-12600K CPU from overheating and to reach its maximum potential, we recommend using a 240mm water cooler or one of the Pro or Extreme class LGA1700 air coolers for cooling. Also, don't forget about a well-ventilated case with no less than one intake and one exhaust fan!