Intel Core i5 12600K

The Core i5 12600K is the best general CPU so far of 2022. It’s faster than a Core i9 11900K, and brings with it support for the latest tech in DDR5 and PCIe 5.0. For that, we dare say it’s actually a great PC building deal.

The Core i5 is the CPU that matters for most home users. It’s cheaper than either a Core i7 or i9, yet still offers the basics of what makes those chips great for computing. With the Core i5 12600K, the first Core i5 of the Alder Lake generation, that’s no different, although that may be understating its abilities. It only took one generation, and less than 12 months, for Intel to take that Core i9 performance