i3-4100U vs i5-2520M
Primary details
Comparing Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 2200 | not rated |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Series | Intel Core i5 | Intel Core i3 |
| Power efficiency | 3.81 | no data |
| Architecture codename | Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) | Haswell (2013−2015) |
| Release date | 1 February 2011 (13 years ago) | 4 June 2013 (11 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $225 | no data |
Detailed specifications
Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U 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) | 2 (Dual-core) |
| Threads | 4 | 4 |
| Base clock speed | 2.5 GHz | 1.8 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3.2 GHz | 1.8 GHz |
| Bus type | DMI 2.0 | no data |
| Bus rate | 4 × 5 GT/s | 5 GT/s |
| Multiplier | 25 | no data |
| L1 cache | 64K (per core) | 64K (per core) |
| L2 cache | 256K (per core) | 256K (per core) |
| L3 cache | 3 MB (shared) | 3 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 32 nm | 22 nm |
| Die size | 149 mm2 | 118 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | 100 °C | 100 °C |
| Number of transistors | 624 million | 1,400 million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
Compatibility
Information on Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U 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 (Uniprocessor) | 1 |
| Socket | PPGA988 | FCBGA1168 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 35 Watt | 15 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® AVX | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2 |
| AES-NI | + | + |
| FMA | + | - |
| AVX | + | + |
| vPro | + | no data |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| My WiFi | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | - |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | + |
| Idle States | + | + |
| Thermal Monitoring | + | + |
| Flex Memory Access | + | no data |
| Demand Based Switching | - | no data |
| GPIO | no data | + |
| Smart Connect | no data | + |
| FDI | + | - |
| Fast Memory Access | + | no data |
| AMT | no data | 9.5 |
| Matrix Storage | no data | - |
| HD Audio | no data | + |
| RST | no data | + |
Security technologies
Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | + |
| EDB | + | + |
| Secure Key | no data | + |
| Identity Protection | + | + |
| Anti-Theft | + | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | + | + |
| VT-d | + | + |
| VT-x | + | + |
| EPT | + | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | DDR3 |
| Maximum memory size | 16 GB | 16 GB |
| Max memory channels | 2 | 2 |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 21.335 GB/s | 25.6 GB/s |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card Compare | Intel HD Graphics 3000 | Intel HD Graphics 4400 |
| Max video memory | no data | 2 GB |
| Quick Sync Video | + | + |
| Clear Video HD | + | + |
| Graphics max frequency | 1.3 GHz | 1 GHz |
| InTru 3D | + | + |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | 2 | 3 |
| eDP | + | + |
| DisplayPort | + | + |
| HDMI | + | + |
| SDVO | + | no data |
| CRT | + | no data |
Graphics image quality
Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.
| Max resolution over HDMI 1.4 | no data | 3200x2000@60Hz |
| Max resolution over DisplayPort | no data | 3200x2000@60Hz |
| Max resolution over VGA | no data | N/A |
Graphics API support
APIs supported by Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.
| DirectX | no data | 11.2/12 |
| OpenGL | no data | 4.3 |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U.
| PCIe version | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | 16 | 12 |
| PCI support | no data | - |
| USB revision | no data | 3.0 |
| Total number of SATA ports | no data | 4 |
| Max number of SATA 6 Gb/s Ports | no data | 4 |
| Integrated IDE | no data | - |
| Number of USB ports | no data | 4 |
| Integrated LAN | no data | - |
| UART | no data | + |
Pros & cons summary
| Integrated graphics card | 0.66 | 1.35 |
| Recency | 1 February 2011 | 4 June 2013 |
| Chip lithography | 32 nm | 22 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 35 Watt | 15 Watt |
i3-4100U has 104.5% faster integrated GPU, an age advantage of 2 years, a 45.5% more advanced lithography process, and 133.3% lower power consumption.
We couldn't decide between Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U. We've got no test results to judge.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-2520M and Core i3-4100U, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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