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There is no denying the performance of Intel Core i7-13700K is pretty darned impressive, however its behaviour is a different story.
On Auto settings with XMP enabled the Core i7 draws the same power as the Core i9, despite having fewer cores that run at a slower clock speed. The consequence is that while the Core i9 runs at a temperature close to 90 degrees C when the CPU is fully loaded, we instead see the Core i7 hitting 99 degrees and then throttling slightly.
This can be easily fixed by setting a manual power limit in the BIOS, however it feels somewhat shoddy to push this task onto the user when it could be easily fixed with an update to the BIOS.
In other respects the Core i7-13700K is very impressive, but it cannot match the Core i9-13900K for raw performance and neither can it match the Core i5-13600K in terms of value for money. It is entirely logical that the Core i7 sits between the Core i5 and the Core i9 but this means its potential customer base is narrowly defined.
Gamers on a budget can happily buy the Core i5 while being confident they can render the occasional video without difficulty while hardcore power users should plump for the more expensive Core i9. The Core i7-13700K will instead appeal to users who play games and also create content, and while they are happy spending money don't want to go absolutely crazy.
You can buy the Intel Core i7-13700K for £470 from Overclockers UK HERE.
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Pros:
- Good all-round performance.
- Decent value for money.
- Z790 platform and fast DDR5 work really well together.
Cons:
- On Auto the Core i7 runs hot and is hungry for power.
- Gamers can happily stick with Core i5-13600K.
- Content creators should choose Core i9 or Ryzen 9.
KitGuru says: Core i7-13700K has huge potential but needs better support from the BIOS writers.
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