Phenom II X3 N870 vs i3-540
Aggregate performance score
Phenom II X3 N870 outperforms Core i3-540 by a small 9% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 2481 | 2418 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 0.11 | no data |
| Market segment | Desktop processor | Laptop |
| Series | no data | 3x AMD Phenom II |
| Power efficiency | 1.26 | 2.87 |
| Architecture codename | Clarkdale (2010−2011) | Champlain (2010−2011) |
| Release date | 7 January 2010 (14 years ago) | 16 December 2010 (13 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $45 | no data |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Detailed specifications
Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870 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) | 3 (Tri-Core) |
| Threads | 4 | 3 |
| Base clock speed | 3.06 GHz | no data |
| Boost clock speed | 0.07 GHz | 2.3 GHz |
| Bus rate | 2.5 GT/s | 3600 MHz |
| L1 cache | 64 KB (per core) | 384 KB |
| L2 cache | 256 KB (per core) | 1.5 MB |
| L3 cache | 4 MB (shared) | no data |
| Chip lithography | 32 nm | 45 nm |
| Die size | 81 mm2 | no data |
| Maximum core temperature | 73 °C | no data |
| Number of transistors | 382 million | no data |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
Compatibility
Information on Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870 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 | no data |
| Socket | FCLGA1156 | S1 (S1g4) |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 73 Watt | 35 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® SSE4.2 | 86x MMX(+), 3DNow!(+), SSE(1,2,3,4A),-64, AMD-V |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | - | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | no data |
| Idle States | + | no data |
| Demand Based Switching | - | no data |
| PAE | 36 Bit | no data |
| FDI | + | no data |
Security technologies
Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870 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 i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870 are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | - | + |
| VT-x | + | no data |
| EPT | + | no data |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | DDR3 |
| Maximum memory size | 16.38 GB | no data |
| Max memory channels | 2 | no data |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 21 GB/s | no data |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | Intel® HD Graphics for Previous Generation Intel® Processors | no data |
| Clear Video HD | + | no data |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870 integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | 2 | no data |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870.
| PCIe version | 2.0 | no data |
| PCI Express lanes | 16 | no data |
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 0.97 | 1.06 |
| Recency | 7 January 2010 | 16 December 2010 |
| Physical cores | 2 | 3 |
| Threads | 4 | 3 |
| Chip lithography | 32 nm | 45 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 73 Watt | 35 Watt |
i3-540 has 33.3% more threads, and a 40.6% more advanced lithography process.
Phenom II X3 N870, on the other hand, has a 9.3% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 11 months, 50% more physical cores, and 108.6% lower power consumption.
Given the minimal performance differences, no clear winner can be declared between Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870.
Note that Core i3-540 is a desktop processor while Phenom II X3 N870 is a notebook one.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core i3-540 and Phenom II X3 N870, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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