Intel Core i7-14700K may run with 20-cores and be a 'complete beast' (but maybe not for gamers)

Intel's Core i7-14700K might be a key part of the incoming Raptor Lake Refresh line-up if a new leak is correct, as the processor is supposedly upping the ante to 20-cores.

Moore's Law is Dead (MLID) has tapped sources to discover that the 14700K could run with 8 performance cores and 12 efficiency cores (20-cores in total, and 28-threads), compared to its predecessor, the 13700K, which has 8 of both (16-cores in total).

MLID isn't certain on this - and we should always be careful about accepting leaks without bearing in mind that they could be wrong, anyway - but it seems like this is the route Intel will be taking (as backed up by a leaked slide detailing mobile CPU configurations for Raptor Lake Refresh).

MLID reminds us that the Core i7-14700K will have higher clock speeds at the same power consumption of Raptor Lake, and so with those extra efficiency cores on board, we should see a better uplift for the 14700K in terms of multi-threaded performance than with the flagship 14900K.

Indeed, the leaker tells us to expect the 14700K to deliver single-thread performance roughly on par with the 13900K, and for multi-threaded, we should see this CPU hit 15% to 20% faster than AMD's 7900X.

A lot will depend on pricing, as ever, but MLID asserts that if Intel pegs this at $450 in the US, it'll be a 'complete beast' of a processor for creators.

For gamers, though, while the 14700K should be a good upgrade over the 13700K - MLID makes no bones about that - the CPU might struggle at the kind of pricing it may find itself up against with the 7800X3D (or indeed the 7900X) by the time Intel releases the chip. As already noted, a great deal is riding on what Intel plans to do with pricing for Raptor Lake Refresh.

Whatever the case, the 14700K could be the most tempting new chip here, because as we heard with the 14900K yesterday, it could be more of a case of Intel doing just about enough with the flagship refresh.

Whereas previous rumors suggested the 14900K might hit as fast as 6.5GHz, seemingly it'll likely be pitched at more like 6.2GHz, and therefore won't be quite as beefy as thought.

As to how the rest of the Raptor Lake Refresh range will pan out, we keenly await further leaks, and as they're coming quite quickly now, it probably won't be a lengthy wait. These 14th-gen processors are expected to arrive in October, which isn't that far off now.