Processor Comparison Table

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in Intel | 116 comments

Intel Processor Comparison – Part 16 of 16

The table below compares a few processors both form Core i as well as Core 2 technologies by Intel. This article is part of a series of articles listed below

  1. Intel Processor Comparison – Introduction
  2. Want a faster PC, get more RAM first
  3. Processor Flashback
  4. Hyper Threading Technology
  5. Difference between Thread and Process
  6. Difference between Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad
  7. Difference Between Core 2 Duo and Core i3
  8. Difference Between Core 2 Quad and Core i5
  9. Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  10. Difference Between Core i3 and Core i5
  11. Difference Between Core i5 and Core i7
  12. Differences Between Core 2 and Core i Technologies
  13. Difference Between FSB and DMI
  14. Difference Between Smart Cache and L2 Cache
  15. Processor Comparison Bottom Line
  16. Processor Comparison Table

Processor Comparison Table

Name Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor Q9400 (6M Cache, 2.66 GHz, 1333 MHz FSB) Intel® Core™ i3-540 Processor (4M Cache, 3.06 GHz) Intel® Core™ i5-750 Processor (8M Cache, 2.66 GHz) Intel® Core™ i7-860 Processor (8M Cache, 2.80 GHz) Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor E8600 (6M Cache, 3.33 GHz, 1333 MHz FSB)
Code Name Yorkfield Clarkdale Lynnfield Lynnfield Wolfdale
Status Launched Launched Launched Launched Launched
Launch Date Q3’08 Q1’10 Q3’09 Q3’09 Q3’08
Processor Number Q9400 i3-540 i5-750 i7-860 E8600
# of Cores 4 2 4 4 2
# of Threads 4 4 4 8 2
Clock Speed 2.66 GHz 3.06 GHz 2.66 GHz 2.8 GHz 3.33 GHz
Max Turbo Frequency 3.2 GHz 3.46 GHz
Cache 6 MB L2 Cache 4 MB Intel® Smart Cache 8 MB Intel® Smart Cache 8 MB Intel® Smart Cache 6 MB L2 Cache
Bus/Core Ratio 8 23 20 21 10
Bus Type FSB DMI DMI DMI FSB
System Bus 1333 MHz 2.5 GT/s 2.5 GT/s 2.5 GT/s 1333 MHz
FSB Parity No No
Instruction Set 64-bit 64-bit 64-bit 64-bit 64-bit
Instruction Set Extensions SSE4.2 SSE4.2 SSE4.2
Embedded Options Available Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Supplemental SKU No No No No No
Lithography 45 nm 32 nm 45 nm 45 nm 45 nm
Max TDP 95 W 73 W 95 W 95 W 65 W
VID Voltage Range 0.8500v-1.3625v 0.6500V-1.4000V 0.6500V-1.4000V 0.6500V-1.4000V 0.8500V-1.3625V
1ku Bulk Budgetary Price $183.00 $133.00 $196.00 $284.00 $266.00
Max Memory Size
(dependent on memory type)		 16 GB 16 GB 16 GB
Memory Types DDR3-1066/1333 DDR3-1066/1333 DDR3-1066/1333
# of Memory Channels 2 2 2
Max Memory Bandwidth 21 GB/s 21 GB/s 21 GB/s
Physical Address Extensions 36-bit 36-bit 36-bit
ECC Memory Supported No
Integrated Graphics Yes No No
Intel® HD Graphics Yes
Graphics Base Frequency 733 MHz
Intel® Flexible Display Interface (Intel® FDI) Yes
Intel® Clear Video HD Technology Yes
Dual Display Capable Yes
PCI Express Revision 2.0 2.0 2.0
PCI Express Configurations 1×16, 2×8 1×16, 2×8 1×16, 2×8
# of PCI Express Ports 1 1 1
Max CPU Configuration 1 1 1
TCASE 71.4°C 72.6°C 72.7°C 72.4°C
Package Size 37.5mm x 37.5mm 37.5mm x 37.5mm 37.5mm x 37.5mm 37.5mm x 37.5mm 37.5mm x 37.5mm
Lithography 45 nm 32 nm 45 nm 45 nm 45 nm
Processing Die Size 164 mm2 81 mm2 296 mm2 296 mm2 107 mm2
# of Processing Die Transistors 456 million 382 million 774 million 774 million 410 million
Graphics and IMC Lithography 45 nm
Graphics and IMC Die Size 114 mm2
# of Graphics and IMC Die Transistors 177 million
Sockets Supported LGA775 FCLGA1156 LGA1156 LGA1156 LGA775
Halogen Free Options Available Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Intel® Turbo Boost Technology No No Yes Yes No
Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology No Yes No Yes No
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d) Yes No No Yes Yes
Intel® Trusted Execution Technology Yes No No Yes Yes
AES New Instructions No No No No No
Intel® 64 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Idle States Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Enhanced Intel® Speedstep Technology Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Intel® Demand Based Switching No No No No No
Thermal Monitoring Technologies Yes No No No Yes
Execute Disable Bit Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
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To buy or not to buy the new Processor

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in Computer Science, Intel | 7 comments

Processor Comparison – Part 15 of 16

If you are a normal user and dont do alot of number crunching, you may not find a significant difference between these processors in day to day use but if you are a power user and do a lot of DVD ripping, video conversion, extreme 3d gaming, mp3 and video editing, photo conversion, programming or even file compression (zip or rar etc), you will need a faster processor. Go for a top of the line processor if your current machine is out of date but the price of these processor drops faster than the apple falling from a tree. So watch out and dont spend too much on a processor.

I’ve tried to simplify the comparison between these processors in this article but if you think not enough detail has been given, please go through the following table that has been taken from Intel’s website and it compares five different processors, one example from one technology each.

This article is part of a series of articles listed below

  1. Intel Processor Comparison – Introduction
  2. Want a faster PC, get more RAM first
  3. Processor Flashback
  4. Hyper Threading Technology
  5. Difference between Thread and Process
  6. Difference between Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad
  7. Difference Between Core 2 Duo and Core i3
  8. Difference Between Core 2 Quad and Core i5
  9. Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  10. Difference Between Core i3 and Core i5
  11. Difference Between Core i5 and Core i7
  12. Differences Between Core 2 and Core i Technologies
  13. Difference Between FSB and DMI
  14. Difference Between Smart Cache and L2 Cache
  15. Processor Comparison Bottom Line
  16. Processor Comparison Table
Read More

Difference between L2 Cache and Intel Smart Cache

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in Intel | 40 comments

Intel Processor Comparison – Part 14 of 16

Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 use Intel Smart Cache while older processors have been using L2 Cache. I have failed to find anything special in terms of feature of this smart cache. Intel belives that this Smart Cache is smarter than L2 cache but I believe that it is more of a marketing team terminology and is hardly any better than the conventional L2 cache. Please do let me know if you know something better than that about Smart Cache, please do let me know.

This article is part of a series of articles listed below

  1. Intel Processor Comparison – Introduction
  2. Want a faster PC, get more RAM first
  3. Processor Flashback
  4. Hyper Threading Technology
  5. Difference between Thread and Process
  6. Difference between Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad
  7. Difference Between Core 2 Duo and Core i3
  8. Difference Between Core 2 Quad and Core i5
  9. Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  10. Difference Between Core i3 and Core i5
  11. Difference Between Core i5 and Core i7
  12. Differences Between Core 2 and Core i Technologies
  13. Difference Between FSB and DMI
  14. Difference Between Smart Cache and L2 Cache
  15. Processor Comparison Bottom Line
  16. Processor Comparison Table
Read More

Difference between FSB and DMI

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in Intel | 2 comments

Difference between FSB and DMI

Intel Processor Comparison – Part 13 of 16

Front Side Bus

Front Side Bus

Front Side Bus

FSB is a BUS technology that is used in Core 2 Quad/Duo processor technologies and earlier. FSB allows the processor to communicate with other components of the computer including Memory, PCIe, Video as well as IO devices like USB, Hard disk, Network etc. Everything that goes in and out of the processor goes through FSB. See the diagram below to see a typical Core 2 Duo processor and FSB communication channels.

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DMI – Direct Media Inteface

Core i7 running on DMI

DMI Technology

DMI bus technology is used in Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 processors. The basic difference in architecture is, that the processor communicates over a different channel with RAM, a different channel with PCIe and a third channel DMI to communicate with all other components of the computer. This increases the performance significantly. See diagram below for a typical Core i7 architecture.

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This article is part of a series of articles listed below

  1. Intel Processor Comparison – Introduction
  2. Want a faster PC, get more RAM first
  3. Processor Flashback
  4. Hyper Threading Technology
  5. Difference between Thread and Process
  6. Difference between Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad
  7. Difference Between Core 2 Duo and Core i3
  8. Difference Between Core 2 Quad and Core i5
  9. Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  10. Difference Between Core i3 and Core i5
  11. Difference Between Core i5 and Core i7
  12. Differences Between Core 2 and Core i Technologies
  13. Difference Between FSB and DMI
  14. Difference Between Smart Cache and L2 Cache
  15. Processor Comparison Bottom Line
  16. Processor Comparison Table
Read More

Difference between Core 2 Technology vs Core i Technology

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in Intel | 1 comment

Intel Processor Comparison – Part 12 of 16

Intel Core 2 Quad and Core 2 Duo technology have some more differences as compared to Intel’s Core i3, i5 and i7 technologies. Core 2 technology supports L2 cache while Core iX processors run Intel Smart Cache technology. Similarly, architectural change in bus architecture is also a difference. Core 2 processors use FSB (Front Side Bus) while Core i processors use Intel Smart Cache.

This article is part of a series of articles listed below

  1. Intel Processor Comparison – Introduction
  2. Want a faster PC, get more RAM first
  3. Processor Flashback
  4. Hyper Threading Technology
  5. Difference between Thread and Process
  6. Difference between Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad
  7. Difference Between Core 2 Duo and Core i3
  8. Difference Between Core 2 Quad and Core i5
  9. Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  10. Difference Between Core i3 and Core i5
  11. Difference Between Core i5 and Core i7
  12. Differences Between Core 2 and Core i Technologies
  13. Difference Between FSB and DMI
  14. Difference Between Smart Cache and L2 Cache
  15. Processor Comparison Bottom Line
  16. Processor Comparison Table
Read More

Difference Between Core i5 and Core i7

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in Intel | 14 comments

Intel Processor Comparison – Part 11 of 16

Am I getting redundant here? Not really. Intel Core i5 is a quad core processor that can run four processes at a time, while each process can run only one thread. While Intel Core i7 can run four processes and eight threads at the same time on its four cores. So you can say that Core i5 has uni-threaded four cores, while Core i7 is a quad core processor with each core running hyper threading technology.

This article is part of a series of articles listed below

  1. Intel Processor Comparison – Introduction
  2. Want a faster PC, get more RAM first
  3. Processor Flashback
  4. Hyper Threading Technology
  5. Difference between Thread and Process
  6. Difference between Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad
  7. Difference Between Core 2 Duo and Core i3
  8. Difference Between Core 2 Quad and Core i5
  9. Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  10. Difference Between Core i3 and Core i5
  11. Difference Between Core i5 and Core i7
  12. Differences Between Core 2 and Core i Technologies
  13. Difference Between FSB and DMI
  14. Difference Between Smart Cache and L2 Cache
  15. Processor Comparison Bottom Line
  16. Processor Comparison Table
Read More

Difference Between Core i3 and Core i5

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in Intel | 9 comments

Intel Processor Comparison – Part 10 of 16

Intel Core i3 is a dual core processor while Core i5 is a quad core processor. While Core i3 can run total of 4 threads and 2 processes at a time, Core i5 can run 4 threads and 4 processes at a time. Intel Core i3 is necessary a next version of Core 2 Duo while Core i5 is the next version of Core 2 Quad.

This article is part of a series of articles listed below

  1. Intel Processor Comparison – Introduction
  2. Want a faster PC, get more RAM first
  3. Processor Flashback
  4. Hyper Threading Technology
  5. Difference between Thread and Process
  6. Difference between Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad
  7. Difference Between Core 2 Duo and Core i3
  8. Difference Between Core 2 Quad and Core i5
  9. Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  10. Difference Between Core i3 and Core i5
  11. Difference Between Core i5 and Core i7
  12. Differences Between Core 2 and Core i Technologies
  13. Difference Between FSB and DMI
  14. Difference Between Smart Cache and L2 Cache
  15. Processor Comparison Bottom Line
  16. Processor Comparison Table
Read More

Intel Turbo Boost Technolog

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in Intel | 0 comments

Intel Processor Comparison – Part 9 of 16

Intel Turbo boost technology is a smart way of over clocking the processors. Gamers and enthusiasts around the globe have been using tricks to overclock their processors to get better speeds. This fact has become so popular that Intel has included Turbo Boost as their native feature. Whenever the processor is over loaded and reached its 100% processing limit, Intel Turbo Boost tehcnology comes into play. It increases the processor’s core frequency by 133 MHz after random and frequent intervals. The processor frequency continues to increase till the upper limit for the processor Turbo is reached. The upper limit is the maximum overclocking frequency that is allowed by Intel. You may end up frying your processor if you dont stop there.

This article is part of a series of articles listed below

  1. Intel Processor Comparison – Introduction
  2. Want a faster PC, get more RAM first
  3. Processor Flashback
  4. Hyper Threading Technology
  5. Difference between Thread and Process
  6. Difference between Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad
  7. Difference Between Core 2 Duo and Core i3
  8. Difference Between Core 2 Quad and Core i5
  9. Intel Turbo Boost Technology
  10. Difference Between Core i3 and Core i5
  11. Difference Between Core i5 and Core i7
  12. Differences Between Core 2 and Core i Technologies
  13. Difference Between FSB and DMI
  14. Difference Between Smart Cache and L2 Cache
  15. Processor Comparison Bottom Line
  16. Processor Comparison Table
Read More