i5-2450M vs i7-3520M

VS

Aggregate performance score

Core i7-3520M
2012
2 cores / 4 threads, 35 Watt
1.81
+38.2%
Core i5-2450M
2012
2 cores / 4 threads, 35 Watt
1.31

Core i7-3520M outperforms Core i5-2450M by a substantial 38% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking20022260
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Market segmentLaptopLaptop
SeriesIntel Core i7Intel Core i5
Power efficiency4.893.54
Architecture codenameIvy Bridge (2012−2013)Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)
Release date3 June 2012 (12 years ago)1 January 2012 (12 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$346$823

Detailed specifications

Core i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M 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)
Threads44
Base clock speed2.9 GHz2.5 GHz
Boost clock speed3.6 GHz3.1 GHz
Bus typeno dataDMI 2.0
Bus rate5 GT/s4 × 5 GT/s
Multiplierno data25
L1 cache64K (per core)64K (per core)
L2 cache256K (per core)256K (per core)
L3 cache4 MB (shared)3 MB (shared)
Chip lithography22 nm32 nm
Die size118 mm2149 mm2
Maximum core temperature105 °C100 °C
Number of transistorsno data624 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility--

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M 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 (Uniprocessor)
SocketFCBGA1023,FCPGA988FCBGA1023,PPGA988
Power consumption (TDP)35 Watt35 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® AVXIntel® AVX
AES-NI++
FMA-+
AVX++
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)++
My WiFi++
Turbo Boost Technology2.02.0
Hyper-Threading Technology++
Idle States++
Thermal Monitoring++
Flex Memory Access++
Demand Based Switching--
FDI++
Fast Memory Access++

Security technologies

Core i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M 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 i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M are enumerated here.

AMD-V++
VT-d+-
VT-x++
EPT++

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR3DDR3
Maximum memory size32 GB16 GB
Max memory channels22
Maximum memory bandwidth25.6 GB/s21.335 GB/s

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card
Compare
Intel HD Graphics 4000Intel HD Graphics 3000
Quick Sync Video++
Clear Video HD++
Graphics max frequency1.25 GHz1.3 GHz
InTru 3D++

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported32
eDP++
DisplayPort++
HDMI++
SDVO++
CRT++

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M.

PCIe version3.02.0
PCI Express lanes1616

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.

i7-3520M 1.81
+38.2%
i5-2450M 1.31

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.

i7-3520M 2868
+38.2%
i5-2450M 2076

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.

i7-3520M 573
+25.7%
i5-2450M 456

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.

i7-3520M 1165
+32.7%
i5-2450M 878

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.

i7-3520M 4855
+23.9%
i5-2450M 3919

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.

i7-3520M 10467
+22.5%
i5-2450M 8542

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.

i7-3520M 4134
+20.1%
i5-2450M 3442

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.

i7-3520M 15.43
+23.4%
i5-2450M 19.04

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.

i7-3520M 3
+21.7%
i5-2450M 3

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R11.5 is an old benchmark by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version loads a single thread with ray tracing to render a glossy room full of crystal spheres and light sources.

i7-3520M 1.46
+21.7%
i5-2450M 1.2

TrueCrypt AES

TrueCrypt is a discontinued piece of software that was widely used for on-the-fly-encryption of disk partitions, now superseded by VeraCrypt. It contains several embedded performance tests, one of them being TrueCrypt AES, which measures data encryption speed using AES algorithm. Result is encryption speed in gigabytes per second.

i7-3520M 1.7
+21.4%
i5-2450M 1.4

x264 encoding pass 2

x264 Pass 2 is a slower variant of x264 video compression that produces a variable bit rate output file, which results in better quality since the higher bit rate is used when it is needed more. Benchmark result is still measured in frames per second.  

i7-3520M 19
+29.1%
i5-2450M 15

x264 encoding pass 1

x264 version 4.0 is a video encoding benchmark uses MPEG 4 x264 compression method to compress a sample HD (720p) video. Pass 1 is a faster variant that produces a constant bit rate output file. Its result is measured in frames per second, which means how many frames of the source video file were encoded per second.  

i7-3520M 99
+25.4%
i5-2450M 79

WinRAR 4.0

WinRAR 4.0 is an outdated version of a popular file archiver. It contains an internal speed test, using 'Best' setting of RAR compression on large chunks of randomly generated data. Its results are measured in kilobytes per second.

i7-3520M 2715
i5-2450M 2849
+4.9%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 1.81 1.31
Integrated graphics card 1.18 0.66
Recency 3 June 2012 1 January 2012
Chip lithography 22 nm 32 nm

i7-3520M has a 38.2% higher aggregate performance score, 78.8% faster integrated GPU, an age advantage of 5 months, and a 45.5% more advanced lithography process.

The Core i7-3520M is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i5-2450M in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-3520M and Core i5-2450M, 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 i7-3520M
Core i7-3520M
Intel Core i5-2450M
Core i5-2450M

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.

Community ratings

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


4.1 312 votes

Rate Core i7-3520M on a scale of 1 to 5:

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
3.2 1071 vote

Rate Core i5-2450M on a scale of 1 to 5:

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5

Questions & comments

Here you can ask a question about Core i7-3520M or Core i5-2450M, agree or disagree with our judgements, or report an error or mismatch.