Processor N50 vs Athlon II X4 638

Place in the ranking	2191	2022
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Market segment	Desktop processor	Laptop
Power efficiency	2.07	27.60
Architecture codename	Llano (2011−2012)	Alder Lake-N (2023)
Release date	6 February 2012 (12 years ago)	3 January 2023 (1 year ago)

Detailed specifications

Athlon II X4 638 and Processor N50 basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores	4 (Quad-Core)	2 (Dual-core)
Threads	4	2
Base clock speed	2.7 GHz	1 GHz
Boost clock speed	2.7 GHz	3.4 GHz
L1 cache	128 KB (per core)	96 KB (per core)
L2 cache	1 MB (per core)	2 MB (shared)
L3 cache	0 KB	6 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	32 nm	10 nm
Die size	228 mm²	no data
Maximum core temperature	no data	105 °C
Number of transistors	1,178 million	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	+

Compatibility

Information on Athlon II X4 638 and Processor N50 compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration	1	1
Socket	FM1	Intel BGA 1264
Power consumption (TDP)	65 Watt	6 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Athlon II X4 638 and Processor N50. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

AES-NI	-	+
AVX	-	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	no data	+

Security technologies

Athlon II X4 638 and Processor N50 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT

no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Athlon II X4 638 and Processor N50 are enumerated here.

AMD-V	+	-
VT-d	no data	+
VT-x	no data	+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Athlon II X4 638 and Processor N50. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types

DDR3

DDR4, DDR5 4800 MHz Single-channel

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card

no data

Intel UHD Graphics Xe 16EUs (Tiger Lake-H)

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Athlon II X4 638 and Processor N50.

PCIe version	no data	3.0
PCI Express lanes	no data	9

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	1.42	1.75
Recency	6 February 2012	3 January 2023
Physical cores	4	2
Threads	4	2
Chip lithography	32 nm	10 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	65 Watt	6 Watt

Athlon II X4 638 has 100% more physical cores and 100% more threads.

Processor N50, on the other hand, has a 23.2% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 10 years, a 220% more advanced lithography process, and 983.3% lower power consumption.

The Processor N50 is our recommended choice as it beats the Athlon II X4 638 in performance tests.

Note that Athlon II X4 638 is a desktop processor while Processor N50 is a notebook one.

Should you still have questions on choice between Athlon II X4 638 and Processor N50, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.