Which i7? If 7th gen or later, it should use the onboard QuickSync graphics for transcoding.
Use a Chromium based browser (Chrome, Edge), v107 or later. Chromium v107 added support for HEVC video.
Use https://app.plex.tv/desktop. Plex Web v4.94.2 added support for HEVC video. The bundled version of Plex Web does not yet support HEVC.
The video will still transcode if you need to fit under a bandwidth limit or burn subtitles.
