Xeon E5506 vs i3-2120

Place in the ranking	2307	2316
Place by popularity	98	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.14	3.57
Market segment	Desktop processor	Server
Power efficiency	1.79	1.44
Architecture codename	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)	Gainestown (2009−2010)
Release date	20 February 2011 (13 years ago)	30 March 2009 (15 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$95	$43

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Xeon E5506 has 2450% better value for money than i3-2120.

Detailed specifications

Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506 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	4	4
Base clock speed	3.3 GHz	2.13 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.3 GHz	0.13 GHz
Bus rate	5 GT/s	no data
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	3 MB (shared)	4 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	32 nm	45 nm
Die size	131 mm²	263 mm²
Maximum core temperature	69 °C	76 °C
Number of transistors	504 million	731 million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-

Compatibility

Information on Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506 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	2
Socket	FCLGA1155	FCLGA1366,PLGA1366
Power consumption (TDP)	65 Watt	80 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX	no data
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Turbo Boost Technology	-	-
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	-
Idle States	+	+
Thermal Monitoring	+	-
Flex Memory Access	+	no data
Demand Based Switching	no data	+
PAE	no data	40 Bit
FDI	+	no data
Fast Memory Access	+	no data

Security technologies

Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	+
EDB	+	+
Identity Protection	+	-

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506 are enumerated here.

VT-d	-	+
VT-x	+	+
EPT	+	+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR3
Maximum memory size	32 GB	144 GB
Max memory channels	2	3
Maximum memory bandwidth	21 GB/s	19.2 GB/s
ECC memory support	-	+

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card	Intel HD Graphics 2000	N/A
Quick Sync Video	+	-
Clear Video HD	+	no data
Graphics max frequency	1.1 GHz	no data
InTru 3D	+	no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506.

PCIe version	2.0	2.0
PCI Express lanes	16	no data

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.

i3-2120 1.23
+0.8%

Xeon E5506 1.22

Passmark

Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.

i3-2120 1956
+0.6%

Xeon E5506 1944

GeekBench 5 Single-Core

GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.

i3-2120 497
+40.8%

Xeon E5506 353

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.

i3-2120 1023

Xeon E5506 1125
+10%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	1.23	1.22
Recency	20 February 2011	30 March 2009
Physical cores	2	4
Chip lithography	32 nm	45 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	65 Watt	80 Watt

i3-2120 has a 0.8% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 1 year, a 40.6% more advanced lithography process, and 23.1% lower power consumption.

Xeon E5506, on the other hand, has 100% more physical cores.

Given the minimal performance differences, no clear winner can be declared between Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506.

Note that Core i3-2120 is a desktop processor while Xeon E5506 is a server/workstation one.

Should you still have questions on choice between Core i3-2120 and Xeon E5506, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.