AMD ’s heatedly anticipatedRyzen 7 9800X3Dis finally here , and I ’ll tell you justly off that it ’s one of thebest processorsyou can buy . It innovate AMD ’s next - gen 3D V - Cache tech , and it dominates in games . But there ’s still peck of challenger coming from Intel .

The recentCore Ultra 9 285Koffers more nucleus and higher speeds overall , and although it ’s a flagship CPU , the price increment on the Ryzen 7 9800X3D mean the two CPUs are close-fitting than ever in cost . I threw them on the tryout bench to see which CPU comes out out front , and the race was n’t nearly as loaded as I reckon it would be .

Specs and pricing

The Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Core Ultra 9 285 one thousand are in unlike performance course of study , but they ’re actually much closelipped in price than you might expect . A damage increase on the Ryzen 7 9800X3D has add it up to $ 479 . Meanwhile , Intel has slowly reduced cost on its flagship over the last few generations . The Core Ultra 9 285 K comes in at $ 629 the right way now , but price should drop to around $ 589 in the nigh future tense . No doubt , the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is significantly cheaper , but the gap is n’t as large as it once was .

There ’s a good reason why there ’s still a gap . The Core Ultra 9 285 K is a flagship , and it make out with all of the Alexander Bell and whistles that justify that label . It ’s a 24 - inwardness fleck that comes with 24 threads . As opposed to CPUs like theCore i9 - 14900 K , Intel chose to ditch hyper - threading on the Core Ultra 9 285K. rather , it concenter on case-by-case core execution . That means that the Core Ultra 9 285 K is closer to a straight 24 - core CPU , unlike old Intel flagship , which mostly relied on eight public presentation nub .

The Ryzen 7 9800X3D is in a far different category . It ’s only an eight - pith processor , though it has access to simultaneous multi - threading ( SMT ) , so you still get 16 train of thought . Core count is n’t the strong courting of this processor . It ’s the3D V - Cachetech that AMD is using . With this design , AMD is able to pack 104 MB of cache onto the Ryzen 7 9800X3D , which stacks up against only 60 MB of hoard on the Core Ultra 9 285K.

In increase , the Ryzen 7 9800X3D uses AMD ’s next - gen 3D V - Cache tech . With previous central processor like theRyzen 7 7800X3D , AMD would stack additional memory cache on top of the CPU die . Now , AMD puts the cache under the die . That gives the cores more direct access to cooling , allowing AMD to bear on clock speeds and unlock the processor fully foroverclocking .

outdoors of essence and memory cache , the Core Ultra 9 285 K draws quite a bit more power than the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. It can climb up to 250 Isaac Watts , while the Ryzen 7 9800X3D tops out at 120W — and it rarely ever reaches that scrape . However , both CPUs are very efficient , so the gap is n’t as orotund as the eyeglasses would suggest .

Productivity performance

Just based on the specs , you would seize the Core Ultra 9 285 K pout the trading floor with the Ryzen 7 9800X3D , and there ’s some accuracy to that . However , the gap between the two CPUs is n’t as large as you might suspect . Starting with the best display for Intel , you could see Cinebench R24 above . The chart speak for itself here . With a monumental core vantage and gamey clock speed , the Core Ultra 9 285 K comes out beforehand in both single - core and multi - core performance .

The Core Ultra 9 285 K has been pronounce the Cinebench king for a reason , though . It performs oddly well in rendering applications like Cinebench . Even in Blender , which is another rendering program program , you may see the Core Ultra 9 285 K ’s leading start to splay . It ’s much quicker than the Ryzen 7 9800X3D still , but it ’s not offer two times the performance across the control panel .

Outside of rendering , the Core Ultra 9 285 K shockingly lose its grip on the performance poll . Handbrake shows that in action . The Core Ultra 9 285 K dispatch the transcode 26 % faster than the Ryzen 7 9800X3D , but that ’s a hollow triumph . Transcoding is a heavily string workload that should scale up to the massive pith array on the Core Ultra 9 285K. Intel ’s C.P.U. is faster , no doubt , but it should n’t even be cheeseparing .

These functioning differences have big implications in real - world apps . If you attend at Premiere Pro , for example , the Core Ultra 9 285 K and Ryzen 7 9800X3D offer nearly identical performance . That ’s bad for Intel . Premiere Pro is an app that can descale to more than eight cores , and the Core Ultra 9 285 K just is n’t present off those benefit .

Worse , the Ryzen 7 9800X3D was really quick than the Core Ultra 9 285 K in Photoshop . It ’s quicker by a significant margin , too . Photoshop is n’t a very demanding app , and it does n’t scale past eight cores . But it illustrate the inconsistent operation of the Core Ultra 9 285 one thousand , despite what its specs would advise .

The Core Ultra 9 285 K is a better pick than the Ryzen 7 9800X3D if you ’re principally concerned with productivity functioning , but it ’s still not agoodchoice . AMD’sRyzen 9 9950Xis your best bet for productiveness . maintain these two CPUs in closing off , however , the Ryzen 7 9800X3D really comes out ahead , and that ’s due to how it balances satisfactory productivity performance with a monumental gaming advantage .

Gaming performance

I ’ll allow the chart above do most of the speaking here . It ’s not even close when it comes to the gaming performance of the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Core Ultra 9 285K. AMD ’s CPU is universally faster in the 10 game I test , and I ca n’t imagine there are many game — if any at all — where Intel shows a commanding lead . Even worse newsworthiness for Intel is that these results are n’t only on the back of AMD ’s 3D V - Cache .

How can I secern ? Look at game likeAssassin ’s Creed Mirage , Returnal , Red Dead Redemption 2,andBlack Myth : Wukong . All of these game care way more about your art card than your CPU , and the gross profit between the Ryzen 7 9800X3D and Core Ultra 9 285 K are narrow . But AMD ’s Saratoga chip is still faster across the board . It ’s not meaningfully faster , for sure , but these title of respect showcase that the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is just a faster bet on CPU overall , 3D V - Cache or not .

In the titles where the extra memory cache scramble , it ’s a bloodbath . You see that very clearly inF2 2022andFinal Fantasy XIV Dawntrail , where the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is over 50 frames ahead . That ’s a huge margin , and it largely comes down to the cache . game likeCyberpunk 2077see a big bump , too , which is surprising . Cyberpunk 2077can exfoliation well to a sight of core , which the Core Ultra 9 285 K offers , but the Ryzen 7 9800X3D still comes out forward despite its modest gist numeration .

It ’s not a surprise that the Ryzen 7 9800X3D come out forward on gaming functioning , but the margins are great than I carry . Usually , I see a slight bump for a 3D V - Cache CPU over a flagship , but AMD absolutely demolish Intel here .

A decisive win

Between a lower price , much better gaming functioning , and shockingly competent productivity performance , the Ryzen 7 9800X3D is the light choice here . It descend with a price raise compared to the previous contemporaries , but it ’s still far cheaper than the Core Ultra 9 285K. It ’s also based on the AM5 platform , so you could save even more money if you already have a Ryzen 7000 CPU that you want to upgrade from .

The Core Ultra 9 285 K does n’t really have a spot in the current landscape of CPUs . It ’s an telling cow chip , and for certain an interesting one , but it still does n’t make a lot of sense to buy one — be it for gambling or productivity . It ’s expensive and rarely maxes out on power , unless you just sit around at your PC and feed Cinebench all day .