i7 2600 or i5 4590

[Bennj5]

Which one is better?

 

[RobCrezz]

single threaded = 4590 better
multithreaded = 2600 better

 

[boosted1g]

RobCrezz nailed it.

The generation 4 cpus have around 15-25% increased performance. Thus when looking at a single core/thread the newer cpu will be better.

Your i7 has double the threads as the i5 so 8*75% is still better then 4*100%

EDITED:
If you are looking at two complete systems and want to do video editing, rendering, 3d modeling then the i7 wins hands down.
If you are looking at gaming then it is a toss up. Most games will not utilize any more cores/threads then the i5 so the newer i5 would be better, but more and mote games are being coded for 8+ threads and thus the older i7 would then play better.

Now if you are considering upgrade, then the juice is just not worth the squeeze. You wont get enough improvement to at all be worth the cost of the cpu AND a new motherboard.

 

[Bennj5]

Wait i don't understand, is the i7 faster or the i5

EDIT : Ok thanks i understand!

 

[boosted1g]

Ok good.

There is no 100% straight-forward answer on which is faster as they both have pros/cons and thus it all comes down to what you are doing with it.