The Intel Core i7-12700F is a desktop processor with 12 cores, launched in January 2022, at an MSRP of $324. It is part of the Core i7 lineup, using the Alder Lake-S architecture with Socket 1700. Intel Hyper-Threading technology is available and effectly doubles the core-count of the P-Cores, to a total of 20 threads. Core i7-12700F has 25 MB of L3 cache and operates at 2.1 GHz by default, but can boost up to 4.9 GHz, depending on the workload. Intel is building the Core i7-12700F on a 10 nm production process, the transistor count is unknown. The multiplier is locked on Core i7-12700F, which limits its overclocking capabilities.
With a TDP of 65 W, the Core i7-12700F consumes typical power levels for a modern PC. Intel's processor supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory with a dual-channel interface. For communication with other components in the machine, Core i7-12700F uses a PCI-Express Gen 5 connection. This processor does not have integrated graphics, you will need a separate graphics card. Inside the box you will not only find the processor, but also a Laminar RM1 cooler.
Hardware virtualization is available on the Core i7-12700F, which greatly improves virtual machine performance. Additionally, IOMMU virtualization (PCI passthrough) is supported, so that guest virtual machines may directly use host hardware. Programs using Advanced Vector Extensions (AVX) will run on this processor, boosting performance for calculation-heavy applications. Besides AVX, Intel is including the newer AVX2 standard, too, but not AVX-512.