The Intel Core i9 12900KF is one of the best CPUs I personally have ever tested and I am happy to share my thoughts and facts to base them off of. This CPU is priced at $616.99 and has 16 cores and 24 threads to allow you to complete a variety of different tasks at once. The i9 12900KF is one of the KF counterparts to the K-series CPUs that were produced by Intel, which are usually cheaper than the K-series, but can be just as effective on certain tasks.

Motherboards that are best fit for this CPU are motherboards with the LGA 1700 CPU socket that can allow up to 2.4GHz of speed for the CPU to function at peak performance. This CPU is great to work for Windows 11 and makes Windows 10 work like it’s brand new. Your best options for memory are DDR4/DDR5 so long as the speed is close if not the same as the CPU.

Using the specifications below, I have found where another person has tested this CPU and got their own results and their own opinion on it. (the image is a link to the site)

• The new P-core is faster than a Zen 3 core, and uses 55-65 W in ST
• The new E-core is faster than Skylake, and uses 11-15 W in ST
• Maximum all-core power recorded was 272 W, but usually below 241 W (even in AVX-512)
• Despite Intel saying otherwise, Alder Lake does have AVX-512 support (if you want it)!
• Overall Performance of i9-12900K is well above i9-11900K
• Performance against AMD overall is a mixed bag: win on ST, MT varies
• Performance per Watt of the P-cores still lags Zen3
• There are some fundamental Windows 10 issues (that can be solved)
• Don’t trust thermal software just yet, it says 100C but it’s not
• Linux idle power is lower than Windows idle power
• DDR5 gains shine through in specific MT tests, otherwise neutral to DDR4

(the list above is not my words, the credit to this list belongs to Dr. Ian Cutress & Andrei Frumusanu)

Looking back on all of what has been stated/listed, this CPU has a record of working great for whatever task is required of it. Don’t just take my word for it, go out and find other reviews on this if you are interested in making this purchase to get the opinion of countless others.

Note:  This review is part of a classroom project.

References:

Ian Cutress, Andrei Frumusanu. “The Intel 12th Gen Core I9-12900K Review: Hybrid Performance Brings Hybrid Complexity.” Anandtech.Com, https://www.anandtech.com/show/17047/the-intel-12th-gen-core-i912900k-review-hybrid-performance-brings-hybrid-complexity. Accessed 27 Jan. 2022.