AMD Ryzen 5 mid-range processors are now available which gives tech enthusiasts more cheaper substitutes to Intel's Core i5 CPUs. However, the AMD Ryzen 5 1600X processor has more cores and it has three times more threads compared to its rival the Core i5-7600K giving it an advantage.
AMD's new Ryzen 5 series includes four different processors; the 1600X, 1600, 1500X, and 1400 CPUs. The Ryzen 5 1600X comes with 6 cores and 12 threads, 16 MB L3, 3.6 GHz base clock that can be boosted up to 4.0 GHz and is presented at a TDP (thermal design power) of 95W. The Ryzen 5 1600 will also have 6 cores and 12 threads with base and boost speeds of 3.2 GHz and 3.6 GHz, respectively. This will cost around $219 for the processor.
On the other hand, the Ryzen 5 1500X has 4 cores and 8 threads with long speeds of 3.5 GHz to 3.7 GHz and will only cost $189. Furthermore, the Ryzen 5 1400 has 4 cores and 8 threads with 3.2 GHz to 3.4 GHz and will be worth $169. The Ryzen 5 1600, 1500X and 1400 will have a TDP of 65W.
AMD's mid-range set of CPUs is less powerful compared to the Ryzen 7 line which is destined for those who are serious gamers and businessman. The new processors are meant for mainstream users and is a bigger market than the Ryzen 7 users, according to a report by AnandTech.
However, the Ryzen 5 1600X is similar to Intel's high-end Core i7 processor in terms of spend performance in spite of it being less expensive. When compared to Intel's Core i5-7600K which has 4 cores and 4 threads, the Ryzen 5 1600X is 70% faster, reported by Kotaku. It is not a surprise that AMD Ryzen 5 processors did a remarkable job against its competitors since they have more cores and threads.