The best replacement for core i7 is xeon.

The best alternatives to core i7 are rated as following:
★★★★★  xeon
★★★★  core 2 quad
★★★★  core i5
★★★★  i5
★★★  quad core
★★  phenom ii
★  amd a10
★  core i3
★  phenom ii x6
★  sandy bridge
★  core duo
  xeon e3
  phenom ii x4
  core i5 macbook pro
  amd phenom
  intel core i5
  amd phenom ii
  quad core i7
  dual core
  q6600
  phenom 2
  amd phenom x6
  intel xeon
  xeon e5
  intel core 2 duo
  core quad
  phenom x6
  core i5 haswell
  q9650

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core i7
xeon
core 2 quad