This might not sound like all that big of a deal if you plan on running a dedicated GPU in your build, but it’s still something worth keeping in mind.
Today’s iGPUs are actually fairly capable and are totally sufficient for most use-cases. Plus, if your dedicated graphics card happens to malfunction (for whatever reason), having an iGPU for troubleshooting can end up being a life-saver.
Seeing as they don’t have any integrated graphics, F-series CPUs are always a bit cheaper than their regular counterparts. The difference in price, however, is most often negligible.
Fun fact: A lot of these CPU variants are due to manufacturing defects in the factory. If the silicon has a defect in an area where the iGPU is situated, well, they just make it a feature and sell it as an “F” CPU.
K variants from Intel are typically the most expensive ones. Why, you might ask? Well, for starters, they all feature integrated graphics by default.
More importantly, however, they have unlocked core frequencies which means you can overclock them (to a certain extent, of course) and get much better performance than from regular “base” models – depending on your cooling solution.
You will, however, need a motherboard that supports overclocking – a Z-series chipset, like the Z690, for instance. That, too, is something worth keeping in mind.
Intel KF Processors – Overclocking But No iGPU
KF variants, as the name implies, are a combination of the two – and a most peculiar one at that
They’re unlocked but come without integrated graphics. And so, as a result, they’re typically cheaper than their K counterparts but also pricier than base and F variants.
Summary
If you’re in a rush and just want to get the nitty-gritty at a quick glance, here’s a recap that briefly summarizes the most important details and differences between the three most common Intel CPU markings: K, F, and KF.
K-series processors are unlocked and can be overclocked so as to attain better performance.
F-series processors don’t have integrated graphics which means you’ll have to use a de
dicated GPU right from the very start. They are slightly cheaper, though.
KF CPUs are unlocked but still come without integrated graphics. They are cheaper than their K counterparts but offer the same performance.
If you don’t need an iGPU and want as much power as you can get (for a relatively reasonable amount of money), KF-series processors are definitely the way to go.
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