Core 2 Duo E8500 vs Core i3-540

#ad 
Buy on Amazon
Core i3-530 Core i3-540 Core i3-550 Core i3-560 Core i5-650 Core i5-655K Core i5-660 Core i5-661 Core i5-670 Core i5-680 Pentium G6950 Pentium G6960
VS
#ad 
Buy on Amazon
Celeron E3300 Celeron E3400 Core 2 Duo E7400 Core 2 Duo E7500 Core 2 Duo E8400 Core 2 Duo E8500 Pentium E5200 Pentium E5300 Pentium E5400 Pentium E5500 Pentium E5700 Pentium E5800

Aggregate performance score

Core i3-540
2010
2 cores / 4 threads, 73 Watt
0.97
+21.3%
Core 2 Duo E8500
2008
2 cores / 2 threads, 65 Watt
0.80

Core i3-540 outperforms Core 2 Duo E8500 by a significant 21% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Contents

i3-540 i3-540
Core 2 Duo E8500 Core 2 Duo E8500

Primary details

Comparing Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking24832596
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation0.11no data
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
Power efficiency1.261.16
Architecture codenameClarkdale (2010−2011)Wolfdale (2008−2010)
Release date7 January 2010 (14 years ago)January 2008 (16 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$45no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

no data

Detailed specifications

Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500 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 cores2 (Dual-core)2 (Dual-core)
Threads42
Base clock speed3.06 GHz3.16 GHz
Boost clock speed0.07 GHz3.17 GHz
Bus rate2.5 GT/s1333 MHz
L1 cache64 KB (per core)64 KB
L2 cache256 KB (per core)6 MB (shared)
L3 cache4 MB (shared)0 KB
Chip lithography32 nm45 nm
Die size81 mm2107 mm2
Maximum core temperature73 °Cno data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)no data72 °C
Number of transistors382 million410 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility--
VID voltage rangeno data0.85V-1.3625V

Compatibility

Information on Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500 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 configuration11
SocketFCLGA1156LGA775
Power consumption (TDP)73 Watt65 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® SSE4.2no data
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)++
Turbo Boost Technology--
Hyper-Threading Technology+-
Idle States++
Thermal Monitoring-+
Demand Based Switching--
PAE36 Bitno data
FDI+no data
FSB parityno data-

Security technologies

Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT-+
EDB++

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500 are enumerated here.

VT-dno data+
VT-x++
EPT+no data

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR3DDR1, DDR2, DDR3
Maximum memory size16.38 GBno data
Max memory channels2no data
Maximum memory bandwidth21 GB/sno data

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardIntel® HD Graphics for Previous Generation Intel® Processorsno data
Clear Video HD+no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported2no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500.

PCIe version2.0no data
PCI Express lanes16no 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.

i3-540 0.97
+21.3%
Core 2 Duo E8500 0.80

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.

i3-540 1538
+20.3%
Core 2 Duo E8500 1278

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.

i3-540 409
+5.4%
Core 2 Duo E8500 388

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.

i3-540 837
+31.6%
Core 2 Duo E8500 636

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary

Performance score 0.97 0.80
Threads 4 2
Chip lithography 32 nm 45 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 73 Watt 65 Watt

i3-540 has a 21.3% higher aggregate performance score, 100% more threads, and a 40.6% more advanced lithography process.

Core 2 Duo E8500, on the other hand, has 12.3% lower power consumption.

The Core i3-540 is our recommended choice as it beats the Core 2 Duo E8500 in performance tests.

Should you still have questions on choice between Core i3-540 and Core 2 Duo E8500, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

Vote for your favorite

Do you think we are right or mistaken in our choice? Vote by clicking "Like" button near your favorite CPU.

Intel Core i3-540
Core i3-540
Intel Core 2 Duo E8500
Core 2 Duo E8500
Like
Like

Similar processor comparisons

We picked several similar comparisons of processors in the same market segment and performance relatively close to those reviewed on this page.

i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Pentium G870 Pentium G870
Core 2 Duo E8500 Core 2 Duo E8500
vs
Pentium G840 Pentium G840
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
A4 PRO-7350B A4 PRO 7350B
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Sempron 145 Sempron 145
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Celeron G530 Celeron G530
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Core 2 Duo E4500 Core 2 Duo E4500
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Core 2 Duo E6400 Core 2 Duo E6400
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Core 2 Duo E7600 Core 2 Duo E7600
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Core 2 Quad Q8400 Core 2 Quad Q8400
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Core 2 Quad Q9300 Core 2 Quad Q9300
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Core 2 Quad Q9450 Core 2 Quad Q9450
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
i3-530 Core i3 530
i3-540 Core i3 540
vs
Pentium 4 HT 3.00 Pentium 4 HT 3.00

Community ratings

Here you can see how users rate the processors, as well as rate them yourself.

3.2 665 votes

Rate Core i3-540 on a scale of 1 to 5:

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
3.8 624 votes

Rate Core 2 Duo E8500 on a scale of 1 to 5:

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5

Questions & comments

Here you can ask a question about Core i3-540 or Core 2 Duo E8500, agree or disagree with our judgements, or report an error or mismatch.