A8-3520M vs Core 2 Duo SP9600
Aggregate performance score
A8-3520M outperforms Core 2 Duo SP9600 by a significant 28% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Core 2 Duo SP9600 and A8-3520M processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 2689 | 2519 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Series | Intel Core 2 Duo | AMD A-Series |
| Power efficiency | 2.70 | 2.48 |
| Architecture codename | Penryn (2008−2011) | Llano (2011−2012) |
| Release date | 1 March 2009 (15 years ago) | 20 December 2011 (12 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $316 | no data |
Detailed specifications
Core 2 Duo SP9600 and A8-3520M 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 | 2 (Dual-core) | 4 (Quad-Core) |
| Threads | 2 | 4 |
| Base clock speed | 2.53 GHz | 1.6 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 2.53 GHz | 2.5 GHz |
| Bus rate | 1066 MHz | no data |
| L1 cache | 128 KB | 128 KB (per core) |
| L2 cache | 6 MB | 1 MB (per core) |
| L3 cache | 6 MB L2 Cache | 0 KB |
| Chip lithography | 45 nm | 32 nm |
| Die size | 107 mm2 | 228 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | 105 °C | no data |
| Number of transistors | 410 Million | 1,178 million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
| VID voltage range | 1.05V-1.15V | no data |
Compatibility
Information on Core 2 Duo SP9600 and A8-3520M 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 | no data | 1 |
| Socket | BGA479,BGA956,PBGA479 | FS1 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 25 Watt | 35 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core 2 Duo SP9600 and A8-3520M. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | no data | 3DNow!, MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSE4a, Radeon HD 6620G |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | - | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | - | no data |
| Demand Based Switching | - | no data |
| FSB parity | - | no data |
Security technologies
Core 2 Duo SP9600 and A8-3520M technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | no data |
| EDB | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core 2 Duo SP9600 and A8-3520M are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | - | + |
| VT-x | + | no data |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core 2 Duo SP9600 and A8-3520M. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | no data | DDR3 |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | no data | AMD Radeon HD 6620G |
Synthetic benchmark performance
Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.
Combined synthetic benchmark score
This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.
Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core
Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.
Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core
Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.
3DMark06 CPU
3DMark06 is a discontinued DirectX 9 benchmark suite from Futuremark. Its CPU part contains two scenarios, one dedicated to artificial intelligence pathfinding, another to game physics using PhysX package.
wPrime 32
wPrime 32M is a math multi-thread processor test, which calculates square roots of first 32 million integer numbers. Its result is measured in seconds, so that the less is benchmark result, the faster the processor.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 0.74 | 0.95 |
| Recency | 1 March 2009 | 20 December 2011 |
| Physical cores | 2 | 4 |
| Threads | 2 | 4 |
| Chip lithography | 45 nm | 32 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 25 Watt | 35 Watt |
Core 2 Duo SP9600 has 40% lower power consumption.
A8-3520M, on the other hand, has a 28.4% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 2 years, 100% more physical cores and 100% more threads, and a 40.6% more advanced lithography process.
The A8-3520M is our recommended choice as it beats the Core 2 Duo SP9600 in performance tests.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core 2 Duo SP9600 and A8-3520M, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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