About this item
- Processor Core – Quad core 4 Core
- 64-bit Processing – Yes. Bus Speed 5 GT/s
- Processor Manufacturer – Intel
- Processor Technology – Hyper-Threading Technology
Technical Details
- Brand Intel
- Manufacturer Intel
- Item Height 3.8 Centimeters
- Item Width 3.8 Centimeters
- Product Dimensions 3.8 x 3.8 x 3.8 cm; 9.07 Grams
- Item model number 4690S
- Processor Brand Intel
- Processor Type Core i5
- Processor Speed 3.20 GHz
- Processor Socket LGA 1150
- Processor Count 4
- Computer Memory Type DDR3 SDRAM
- Wattage 84 Watts
- Are Batteries Included No
- Manufacturer Intel
- Country of Origin China
- Item Weight 9.07 g
- Warranty 1 Year
Tre –
Was recommended to grab a flexible i5 over an i7 and I don’t feel like i was let down. it handles everything I need it to with no issues whatsoever.
One person found this helpful
Nayi M. –
good
Jonathan –
I got this CPU with the intention to have it run my home server on a Z87 board (Asus Z87I-Pro; thankfully, I had no issues with my BIOS needing to be updated before I could post with this CPU, although I’ve heard that could be an issue with these Haswell refresh CPU’s), but I’m currently using it to run my home work/play desktop until Intel releases a newer architecture for me to get for my desktop.It performs quite nicely. I must admit that I haven’t run benchmarks on my desktop, nor do I use it to play resource-consuming games, so it’s not like I extensively tested the capabilities of this CPU. Still, my desktop feels snappy, and I have no complaints. Will definitely be getting a 65W TDP model CPU for my next desktop as well: all the performance I need and it barely gets above 35 degrees Celsius (high 90’s Fahrenheit) with my very quite Noctua NH-U12S fan (great for low noise, but not a superb cooler if you know what I mean). The perfect balance for anyone using their computer for office work, media playback and light gaming.Please be advised though that I’m using a discrete graphics card, so this review doesn’t reflect on the quality of the integrated graphics (I can’t say one way or another regarding that).
One person found this helpful
dp102 –
The CPU is 3.2/with a burst mode of 3.9, but in the information presented here, it is 3.9 Gz. Surprise when you get it right on the box it says it is a 3.2… A bit deceptive.
Clayton –
I love this proc so far I am using it in my media server build for a low cost monthly server. It is doing everything I needed it for and more!
Roger W. Brown Jr. –
Excellent CPU
Erik M –
Great performance, low power consumption.
Rich –
This thing is awesome. It is as powerful as the 4690K at stock speeds (I know because I have one) but it runs so much cooler and more efficient. With Windows power options set to “High Performance” and after de-lidding it idles in the low-20’sC and the hottest core does not go above 65C when running prime95 for 10mins. I’m using the Thermaltake Engine 27 cooler.
Don H –
This low wattage CPU performs extremely well, but would buy Skylake chip today.
Oliverclive –
🙂
Mark in SD –
Using in a Plex server using an Asus MB, 16 gigs ram, 128 gig SSD and 5x 6Tb Red drives. The system pulls about 25 watts with drives spinning, and about 42 watts while transcoding video. The on-chip intel 4600 video seems more than adequate for the job and runs about half the wattage of my older Core2 Quad “s” chip.
One person found this helpful
Erin –
I prefer real-world comfort over benchmarks, so I can’t attest to those, but whoever says this chip is crippled is on something. It’s a 3.2gHz processor regardless of what the nomenclature suggests minus the “S”, but it’s a lower-powered one while doing everything the 84W 3.2gHz does in the real world (can’t attest to benchmarks as I couldn’t give a crap). I game heavily on this with a Hyper 212 Evo; pretty sure my cooler is overkill, but I didn’t trust the heatsink and prefer something I can screw down. This is my first Intel chip, and I doubt I will ever go AMD again. Paired it with 16 gigs of DDR3 1600, a Samsung Evo 850 (250gb), a GTX970 and used a Cooler Master N200 case. Loaded Win7 in IDE mode and edited the registry then BIOS for AHCI and it zips right along. Used a Gigabyte GA-B85M-DS3H-A board and had no issues with BIOS incompatibility (mine came loaded with BIOS version F2, which I guess is the point where their boards handle the Haswell refresh chips). Actually thinking of upgrading to the 4790S now just to have the multithreading in case I need it.Update 8/9/16: Did a bit of research as I was looking at upgrading, with the whole mess with the new DirectX and all. Upgraded to the GTX 1060. Somewhat disappointed now with this processor. Not because it is falling behind, but because I’m one who likes to tinker with crap and after reading up on the stuff, this actually is still on par with the new 3.2ghz locked i5 (I believe it’s the 6500?) because of the instruction sets, higher cas latency driving real-world speed down on the new ddr4, whatnot. Plus, power savings alone are about the same. What prompted this research is that I have a friend who just got the new 6500 (not overclocked, can’t attest to overclocked versions) with a sata3 ssd, 8 gigs of 2133 ram, and windows 10, and I really didn’t see any difference just sitting at it and firing up a game. Looking it up, the real-world latencies and whatnot make the hardware still about the same, almost as if Intel is just trying to rip ya off by putting a new name on the old stuff. (I know this isn’t the case, but it seems like it.) I likely won’t need any upgrade now for the next few years, given that I’m using the best bang-for-buck card for 1080p now, so I’m not complaining.
2 people found this helpful
Ellary Kahan –
This is my first socket 1150 CPU to install. It went well. I was impressed by the fact that Intel has done away with thermal paste, as this has cause issues in the past when too much is applied. I had problems getting the cooler pegs to lock, but that was my fault for not reading the directions carefully.
2 people found this helpful
Marco Lazarini –
I bought this processor to build a powerful PC, but as greener as possible. I used low-spin HDDs, mini-ITX motherboard, 80-plus PSU, water cooling, a nice and well vent’ed case. Well, I got many troubles to get this “Haswell refresh” working – needed to buy another processor, an Intel Core i5-4670 to make it happen, as detailed below – but today it worked perfectly. What I could see, comparing my “previous” i5 4670 with this brand new i5 4690S:- Power consumption: when idle, the two processors drain the same low power. I live in Brazil, naturally hot, and temperature at almost-idle runs about 35°C/95°F, some 8°C/14°F above environment temp, which is great for both. However, when fully loaded, their behavior changes considerably: the Core i5 4670 drained about 80W, which means about 80°C/176°F temp at peak; on the other hand, the Core i5 4690S actually drains about 60W (25% less), running at 55°C/131°F at peak. This is VERY important for me, not only due to good power savings, but specially because my room was much more warmer before, now it’s much cooler – and it helps to keep other PC components (motherboard, hard drives) also cooler.- Performance: as incredible as it seems, Core i5 4690S delivers MORE WORK than my Core i5 4670. A little more, but MORE. I use Handbrake under Ubuntu Linux often, to convert DVDs to video files. I made a simple test: picked a ISO DVD image and converted using Core i5 4670, and got 68,1 fps average (encode done after 0:34:36). So, I changed processor to i5 4690S, and repeated the same encoding, getting 69,3 fps average (encoded done after 0:34:00). Okay, just 36s less. However, the new processor did FASTER and COOLER (less power drain), so I’m very happy with results!Well, if you are looking for a excellent performance processor, draining less power than regular Intel Core i5 series, at a competitive price, this product is a fantastic choice. However, pay extreme attention on motherboard and chipset you’ll choose to install this processor: it’s a “HASWELL REFRESH” Core i5, and DO NOT WORK RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX with major Intel 8 Series chipsets (Z87, H87, H81, B85, Q87, Q85) – they NEED a chipset update to support Haswell Refresh CPUs – without update, motherboard WILL NOT FUNCTION – no beep, no video signal, absolutely bricked. Your right choice is motherboard powered by a 9 Series chipset (H97, Z97), which works with Haswell refresh directly. Look at[…] to get details about this.I discovered this little detail too late… I installed my Core i5 4690S on an Asus H87I-Plus motherboard, and didn’t get any sign of life. Sent my motherboard back to reseller to perform BIOS update – they flashed my motherboard with another processor, using EZ Flash 2 (not the Windows utility provided by ASUS). The reseller’s technician tried to run my i5-4690S on another Asus Z87 motherboard – and, as expected, it didn’t get any sign. So, we assumed the i5 4690S was dead (right out of the box?), and I bought a i5 4670 to keep working until RMA. I contacted Intel in Brazil to do a RMA, and Intel did it very fast (thanks Intel, I’m sorry!), about one week to send the “defective” processor and get another back.When the new processor arrived, I removed the 4670 and put the brand new 4690S sent by Intel, and… nothing. Can’t explain how frustrated I was. Contacting Asus, they told me that Windows utility not only flashes new BIOS, but also updates chipset firmware, through Intel MEI (Management Engine Interface) – so, it’s not just a regular BIOS update, it’s a BIOS AND CHIPSET update, only possible running Windows and Intel MEI. I’m using Ubuntu Linux… So, I putted i5 4670 back, installed Windows on another HDD, installed Intel MEI, run Asus Update Tool, everything went fine, powered off PC, replaced 4670 to 4690S and… IT WORKED, at last! If you wouldn’t like to experience that, be aware: buy a motherboard powered by Intel 9 series chipset!
18 people found this helpful
Kenneth Moyer –
I purchased this processor for my home media server since I wanted the processing power, but low energy use. I have to say this was a great purchase on my part. The processor runs very cool and is a beast for streaming and file transfers. I installed this processor in a micro-ATX case and even though it is a tight confined space, it maintains a very cool temp with the stock fan. I would recommend this processor to anyone building a media server to HTPC.
G. Ramirez –
excellent processor coming from a core 2 duo is running really fastGigabyte LGA 1150 Z97 GA-Z97-D3HCrucial Ballistix Tactical Low Profile 16GB KitSeagate Barracuda 3 TB HDD SATA 6 Gb/s 7200 RPM ST3000DM001Corsair Carbide Series 200R Compact ATX CaseXFX PRO650W Core Edition 80+ Bronze ATX 650Samsung Electronics 24x DVDR 5.25-Inch Optical Drive SH-224DB/RSBS
3 people found this helpful
angel –
i love it
dfw –
Very nice processor. I deduct one star because the included heatsink fan is VERY ANNOYINGLY LOUD. Replaced it with the nearly silent low profile Noctua NH-L9I.
Adam –
Good product, Prompt delivery.
John Tisdale –
did what I wanted it to do!
khamis –
Thank excellent service and beautiful
Derald Solomon –
Good CPU for most circumstances. I picked this part specifically because I wanted a lower power (65W) CPU, quad core, and I didn’t need Hyperthreading nor did I want to overclock it. This CPU is cheaper than the K version. My build was focused around a stable digital audio workstation running Mac OS X and mild gaming under Windows. With this CPU I’ve accomplished my goals.I used a Gigabyte GA-B85-HD3 motherboard. The CPU worked right out of the box, but I did update the BIOS after regardless.The CPU is a replacement for an AMD Phenom II X4 965BE. Comparing this Intel to the AMD in my games (Skyrim and X-Plane) I didn’t see a big improvement. Maybe a few FPS. Both games ran very well on the AMD processor.The biggest reason I went with the Intel was for Mac OS X compatibility and low power draw. In that frame of reference, the Intel CPU works just as fast or faster in every task and still allowed me to install Mac OS X without any issues. My overall computer system power draw is 50-75W less. Even under full load my peak power draw is 200W compared to 278W for the AMD system. The CPU fan (Cooler Master EVO 212) runs at idle speed (about 700 rpm) unless I’m running a CPU benchmark, then it speeds up to 850 rpm. In other words, it’s completely silent. The system temperature is about 5-10 degrees cooler, and the fans stay at idle (which they did in the AMD system). CPU never overheats and I’ve managed to top the temperature out at about 50 C.My GPU temperatures went up a bit, and I believe this is because the CPU can feed more data to the GTX 660Ti compared to the AMD. This also explains why I get more fps and slightly higher gaming performance.Overall I am happy with this CPU. I can run Mac OS X now and still maintain my Windows install to play games at a high level of performance.System: i5-4690SGigabyte GA-B85-HD38 GB Corsair RAMSamsung EVO 840 SSDGigabyte GTX 660 Ti**Update** Just wanted to update my review. After spending two weeks with my new CPU I’m pleased to say it was a great buy and a great CPU selection. My typical idle power draw is 48W at the wall and 208W under load using X-Plane and Skyrim. Idle power draw is about half what I was getting with my previous AMD CPU. I can’t say that my games are any faster per se, but for example, my minimum FPS in X-Plane was about 15fps and averaged about 28fps. With the new CPU my minimum is about 24 and average is about 30. So my impression is that the flight sim seems more “fluid” than before. My overall fps is not much higher, but my minimum is more than 50% faster. That contributes a lot to the overall presentation of the sim, and therefore I am happy with the performance. The fact that it uses 70W less power under load and half the idle power, I am confident in saying the CPU is a win-win for me.
22 people found this helpful
anonymous –
Excellent low power i5 processor.
One person found this helpful
Charlie C. –
Very fast, runs extra cool, allows overclocked memory. Main cores are locked at 3.2 Ghz with max turbo of 3.9Full load temps at 50-60C with stock fan. Bought the “S” option for lower temps and better reliability.
2 people found this helpful