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Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U vs Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H: Comparison
What is the difference between 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U and 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H?
L3 cache is where these two genuinely part company, 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U 8 MB against 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H 12 MB, a 33% lead for 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H. They differ on tdp too, 15 W on the 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U versus 45 W on the 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H. Socket is not the same on both, FCBGA1356 on the 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U versus FCBGA1440 on the 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H. Release year is not the same on both, 2017 on the 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U versus 2019 on the 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H.
8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U vs 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H: which one fits your build
Take the 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U for buyers of this laptop generation wanting the premium tier within Intel's first genuinely 4-core U-series generation. Avoid it for buyers with access to newer generations, considerably more recent U-series chips offer meaningful IPC and efficiency gains. Take the 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H for gaming and creator laptops of its generation wanting solid 6-core Coffee Lake Refresh performance. It is the wrong buy for buyers with access to the later 10th Gen i7-10750H, that chip offers a modest generational improvement on a similar core configuration.
What 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U and 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H have in common
The common ground is wider than the gap: efficiency cores, integrated graphics, product line, form factor and market segment are identical here. They match on 1 further specification as well.
Frequently asked questions
Do the 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U and 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H differ on total cores?
Yes. Total Cores reads 4 on the 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U versus 6 on the 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H.
Is the SMT Enabled the same on the 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U and 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H?
It is. Both are listed at Yes, so it is not a reason to pick one over the other.
Specs and benchmarks
Brand
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- Intel
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- Intel
Product Line
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- Core i7
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- Core i7
Form Factor
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- Laptop
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- Laptop
Model Number
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 8550U
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 9850H
Codename
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- Kaby Lake
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- Coffee Lake
Release Year
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 2017
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 2019
TDP
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 15 W
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 45 W
iGPU
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- Intel UHD Graphics 620
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- Intel UHD Graphics 630
Market Segment
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- Laptop
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- Laptop
Microarchitecture
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- Kaby Lake Refresh, 8th Gen Intel Core
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- Coffee Lake Refresh, 9th Gen Intel Core
Socket
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- FCBGA1356
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- FCBGA1440
Process Node
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 14 nm
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 14 nm
Total Cores
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 4
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 6Best
Performance Cores
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 4
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 6Best
Efficiency Cores
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 0
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 0
Total Threads
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 8
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 12Best
SMT Enabled
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- Yes
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- Yes
P-Core Base Clock
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 1.8 GHz
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 2.6 GHz
P-Core Boost Clock
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 4.0 GHz
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 4.6 GHz
L3 Cache
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 8 MB-33%
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 12 MBBest
Base Power
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- 15 W
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- 45 W
Memory Type
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- DDR4, LPDDR3
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- DDR4-2666, LPDDR3-2133
Integrated Graphics
- Intel 8th Gen Intel Core i7 8550U
- Yes
- Intel 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9850H
- Yes
Which one should you pick?
Choose 8550U if you already have it on hand or find it at a lower price.
Choose 9850H if you want the higher L3 cache (12 MB vs 8 MB).