# Intel Core i7-4790K

7 Hacker News commenters recommended Intel Core i7-4790K and 2 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 5 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Intel's Haswell desktop chip lasted people a long time and still makes a fine gaming PC, though critics say it is too old for modern workloads and newer Windows.

## Why people recommend it

- Lasted a long time (2 comments): "It was a good CPU for a long time, but it got a little long in the tooth for modern workloads." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46041503)) "That box lasted way longer than was reasonable." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48644362))
- Still a capable gaming PC (2 comments): "the 4790k is an absolute beast of a CPU and still holds up" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48384320)) "one can make a fine gaming pc for ~$350" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50011424))

## What people warn about

- Too old for modern workloads (1 comments): "It was a good CPU for a long time, but it got a little long in the tooth for modern workloads." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46041503))
- Too old for new Windows (1 comments): "on Windows it would nag me to update but apparently the CPU is too old for new Windows" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48384382))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [AMD Threadripper](https://hackerapproved.com/p/amd-threadripper.md): 17 recommend
- [AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D](https://hackerapproved.com/p/amd-ryzen-7-9800x3d.md): 13 recommend
- [AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D2](https://hackerapproved.com/p/amd-ryzen-9-9950x3d2-dual-edition.md): 13 recommend
- [AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D](https://hackerapproved.com/p/amd-ryzen-7-5800x3d.md): 12 recommend
- [AMD Ryzen 7 5800X](https://hackerapproved.com/p/amd-ryzen-7-5800x.md): 11 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Intel+Core+i7-4790K+processor&tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Official site](https://corpredirect.intel.com/Redirector/404Redirector.aspx?404;https://ark.intel.com/)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Intel Core i7-4790K", https://hackerapproved.com/p/intel-core-i7-4790k/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).