Core i7-880 vs Core i3-7100H

The Core i7-880 packs 4 cores / 8 threads, while the Core i3-7100H offers 2 cores / 4 threads — the Core i7-880 has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 3.73 GHz on the Core i7-880 versus 2.8 GHz on the Core i3-7100H — a 28.5% clock advantage for the Core i7-880 (base: 3.06 GHz vs 3 GHz). The Core i7-880 uses the Lynnfield (2009−2010) architecture (45 nm), while the Core i3-7100H uses Kaby Lake-H (2017) (14 nm). In PassMark, the Core i7-880 scores 3,429 against the Core i3-7100H's 3,450 — a 0.6% lead for the Core i3-7100H. Geekbench 6 single-core — the metric most relevant to gaming — records 507 vs 1,011, a 66.4% lead for the Core i3-7100H that directly translates to higher frame rates. L3 cache: 8 MB (total) on the Core i7-880 vs 3 MB (total) on the Core i3-7100H.

The Core i7-880 uses the LGA1156 socket (PCIe 2.0), while the Core i3-7100H uses BGA1440 (PCIe 3.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches DDR3-1333 on the Core i7-880 versus DDR4-2400 on the Core i3-7100H — the Core i3-7100H supports 28.6% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Core i3-7100H supports up to 64 GB of RAM compared to 16 GB — 120% more capacity for professional workloads. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. Both provide 16 PCIe lanes. Chipset compatibility: P55,H55,H57,Q57 (Core i7-880) and HM175,QM175,CM238 (Core i3-7100H).

Virtualization support: Yes (Core i7-880) vs VT-x, VT-d, EPT (Core i3-7100H). The Core i3-7100H includes integrated graphics (HD Graphics 630), while the Core i7-880 requires a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Core i3-7100H targets Performance Laptop. Direct competitor: Core i3-7100H rivals Ryzen 3 2300U.