Xeon Gold 6421N vs i7-640LM

Place in performance ranking	2450	82
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Market segment	Laptop	Server
Series	Intel Core i7	no data
Architecture codename	Arrandale (2010−2011)	Sapphire Rapids (2023)
Release date	7 January 2010 (14 years ago)	10 January 2023 (1 year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$332	no data

Detailed specifications

Core i7-640LM and Xeon Gold 6421N 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)	32 (Dotriaconta-Core)
Threads	4	64
Base clock speed	2.13 GHz	1.8 GHz
Boost clock speed	2.93 GHz	3.6 GHz
Bus type	DMI 1.0	no data
Bus rate	1 × 2.5 GT/s	no data
Multiplier	16	no data
L1 cache	128 KB	80K (per core)
L2 cache	512 KB	2 MB (per core)
L3 cache	4 MB (shared)	60 MB
Chip lithography	32 nm	Intel 7 nm
Die size	81+177 mm²	no data
Maximum core temperature	105 °C	no data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	no data	85 °C
Number of transistors	382+177 Million	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	no data

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-640LM and Xeon Gold 6421N 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	BGA1288	FCLGA4677
Power consumption (TDP)	25 Watt	185 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-640LM and Xeon Gold 6421N. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2	Intel® AMX, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512
AES-NI	+	+
FMA	+	-
AVX	-	+
vPro	+	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Speed Shift	no data	+
Turbo Boost Technology	+	2.0
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	+
TSX	-	+
Idle States	+	no data
Thermal Monitoring	+	-
Flex Memory Access	+	no data
PAE	36 Bit	no data
FDI	+	no data
Fast Memory Access	+	no data
Status	Discontinued	Launched
Deep Learning Boost	-	+

Security technologies

Core i7-640LM and Xeon Gold 6421N technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	+
EDB	+	+
SGX	no data	Yes with Intel® SPS
OS Guard	no data	+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-640LM and Xeon Gold 6421N are enumerated here.

VT-d	+	+
VT-x	+	+
EPT	+	+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-640LM and Xeon Gold 6421N. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3-800, DDR3-1066	DDR5-4400
Maximum memory size	8 GB	4 TB
Max memory channels	2	8
Maximum memory bandwidth	17.051 GB/s	no data
ECC memory support	-	+

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card	Intel® HD Graphics for Previous Generation Intel® Processors	no data
Clear Video	+	no data
Clear Video HD	+	no data
Graphics max frequency	566 MHz	no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-640LM and Xeon Gold 6421N integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-640LM and Xeon Gold 6421N.

PCIe version	2.0	5
PCI Express lanes	16	80

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.

i7-640LM 0.99

Xeon Gold 6421N 38.01
+3739%

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.

i7-640LM 1525

Xeon Gold 6421N 58797
+3756%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	0.99	38.01
Recency	7 January 2010	10 January 2023
Physical cores	2	32
Threads	4	64
Power consumption (TDP)	25 Watt	185 Watt

i7-640LM has 640% lower power consumption.

Xeon Gold 6421N, on the other hand, has a 3739.4% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 13 years, and 1500% more physical cores and 1500% more threads.

The Xeon Gold 6421N is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i7-640LM in performance tests.

Be aware that Core i7-640LM is a notebook processor while Xeon Gold 6421N is a server/workstation one.

Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-640LM and Xeon Gold 6421N, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.