Just a few years ago, you could split the CPU space with a knife. AMD decidedly took the budget market, while Intel made bigger splashes in the higher end. Now, it’s absolutely anyone’s game across the board. Team Red has its X3D variants that push frame rates to the max, and Team Blue has been a value player ever since Core i5-12400F.
During Amazon’s Spring sale, you can get Intel Core i5-12400F, i5-13400F, and i5-14400F cheaper than they’ve ever been. If you’re wondering what the F is, that just means they don’t have integrated graphics and instead require a dedicated GPU. With these savings, though, it won’t be much of a stretch to upgrade to the best graphics card, too.
Intel Core i5-12400F
“Melding high-performance architecture with fantastic value, Core i5-12400 is a great CPU for a PC build, even in 2024.”
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Starting off with the best deal, Intel Core i5-12400F is currently £107.99 on Amazon UK. That’s a massive 47% discount, putting it at near half price. Amazon US shoppers can get 34% off the same CPU, now down to $137.03. They even come with a bundled Laminar RM1 fan heatsink cooler. It’s not the best chiller out there, but it does the trick at 65W TDP.
This chip sports six performance cores, no efficient cores, and 12 threads, but it still hits just under 10,000 in Cinebench. With a 4.4GHz boost clock and 18MB L3 cache, you’re looking at 1080p gaming without a hitch. Take a look at our five-star Intel Core i5-12400 review. It performs identically to the ‘F’ version, with the only difference being integrated graphics.
Intel Core i5-13400F
“A thoroughly fine CPU primed for mainstream upgrades or fresh builds, Core i5-13400F even stands up to the performance of the latest generation.”
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Moving on to the Intel Core i5-13400F, you can save 15% on Amazon UK, bringing the price to £169. While 23% off in the US is generally better, $185.99 isn’t quite the lowest we’ve seen and is the only discount on this list not at its cheapest. Still, it’s not too far off.
This one’s quite a bit beefier since it’s a newer generation. It sports the same six performance cores, this time accompanied by four efficient cores and 16 threads. Its boost clock is also bolstered to 4.6GHz, all while maintaining the same 65W TDP footprint. All these tweaks culminate in triple-digit frame rates when gaming at 1080p, meaning 1440p is also on the cards. Check out our Intel Core i5-13400F review to see how it stacks up against the rest.
Intel Core i5-14400F
“A robust ten-core CPU from Intel’s Raptor Lake Refresh lineup, ideal for high-performance computing needs, delivering power, and reliability for your tasks.”
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The final deal is a North American exclusive. With 13% off, the Intel Core i5-14400F is $209.99, its best price ever. It’s been this low for just over a month, unrelated to Amazon’s wider Spring sale, but it’s worth mentioning next to the other discounts.
Surprisingly, it doesn’t make a great deal of changes from the previous generation. It still has six performance cores, four efficient cores, and 16 threads. Even the 20MB L3 cache remains the same. The 4.7GHz boost clock is a welcome bump, but it’s a little like splitting hairs. You can expect the same performance as 13400F but with a few extra frames here and there.
Since all these deals are on Amazon, you could easily try these out for yourself. Not only does a Prime membership offer next-day delivery, but the retailer also has a 30-day return policy. If you’re not happy, just send it back for a full refund, no strings attached.
As usual, we’ll keep an eye out for the best savings, so keep checking our deals page. Better yet, follow us on Twitter and Facebook, or sign up for our free weekly newsletter, and we’ll send the discounts directly to you.
