Core i3-2350M vs Core i5-2557M
Aggregate performance score
i5-2557M outperforms i3-2350M by a substantial 35% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Core i5-2557M and Core i3-2350M processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in performance ranking | 2319 | 2519 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Series | Intel Core i5 | Intel Core i3 |
| Architecture codename | Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) | Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) |
| Release date | 19 June 2011 (13 years ago) | 15 May 2011 (13 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $250 | $225 |
Detailed specifications
Core i5-2557M and Core i3-2350M 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 | 1.7 GHz | 2.3 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 1.7 GHz | 2.3 GHz |
| Bus support | 4 × 5 GT/s | 4 × 5 GT/s |
| L1 cache | 128 KB | 128 KB |
| L2 cache | 512 KB | 512 KB |
| L3 cache | 3 MB | 3 MB |
| Chip lithography | 32 nm | 32 nm |
| Die size | 149 mm2 | 149 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | 100 °C | 85 (PGA), 100 (BGA) °C |
| Number of transistors | 624 Million | 624 Million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
| Unlocked multiplier | No | No |
Compatibility
Information on Core i5-2557M and Core i3-2350M 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 (Uniprocessor) |
| Socket | BGA1023 | rPGA988B, BGA1023 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 17 Watt | 35 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-2557M and Core i3-2350M. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| AES-NI | + | no data |
| FMA | + | + |
| AVX | + | + |
| vPro | + | no data |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| My WiFi | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | + | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | + |
| Idle States | + | no data |
| Thermal Monitoring | + | no data |
Security technologies
Core i5-2557M and Core i3-2350M technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | no data |
| EDB | + | no data |
| Anti-Theft | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i5-2557M and Core i3-2350M are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | no data | + |
| VT-d | + | no data |
| VT-x | + | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-2557M and Core i3-2350M. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | DDR3 |
| Maximum memory size | 8 GB | 16 GB |
| Max memory channels | 2 | 2 |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 21.335 GB/s | 21.335 GB/s |
| ECC memory support | - | - |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | Intel HD Graphics 3000 | Intel HD Graphics 3000 |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-2557M and Core i3-2350M.
| PCI Express lanes | 16 | 16 |
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.
Core i5-2557M outperforms Core i3-2350M by 35% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 68%
Core i5-2557M outperforms Core i3-2350M by 36% in Passmark.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 41%
Core i5-2557M outperforms Core i3-2350M by 16% in GeekBench 5 Single-Core.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 41%
Core i5-2557M outperforms Core i3-2350M by 13% in GeekBench 5 Multi-Core.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 19%
Core i5-2557M outperforms Core i3-2350M by 13% in Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 19%
Core i3-2350M outperforms Core i5-2557M by 4% in Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 18%
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.
Benchmark coverage: 18%
Core i3-2350M outperforms Core i5-2557M by 1% in wPrime 32.
Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core
Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.
Benchmark coverage: 17%
Core i5-2557M outperforms Core i3-2350M by 1% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 1.11 | 0.82 |
| Recency | 19 June 2011 | 15 May 2011 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 17 Watt | 35 Watt |
i5-2557M has a 35.4% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 1 month, and 105.9% lower power consumption.
The Core i5-2557M is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i3-2350M in performance tests.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-2557M and Core i3-2350M, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
Similar processor comparisons
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