Atom Z2420 vs i7-870

Primary details

Comparing Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	1930	not rated
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.23	no data
Market segment	Desktop processor	Laptop
Power efficiency	1.96	no data
Architecture codename	Lynnfield (2009−2010)	Saltwell (2013)
Release date	8 September 2009 (15 years ago)	1 January 2013 (11 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$305	no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420 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	4 (Quad-Core)	1 (Single-Core)
Threads	8	2
Base clock speed	2.93 GHz	no data
Boost clock speed	3.6 GHz	1.2 GHz
Bus rate	2.5 GT/s	no data
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	64K (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	512K (per core)
L3 cache	8 MB (shared)	0 KB
Chip lithography	45 nm	32 nm
Die size	296 mm2	65 mm2
Maximum core temperature	73 °C	90 °C
Number of transistors	774 million	140 million
64 bit support	+	-
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420 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	1
Socket	FCLGA1156,LGA1156	FC-MB4617
Power consumption (TDP)	95 Watt	3 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.2	Intel® SSE, Intel® SSE2, Intel® SSE3
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Turbo Boost Technology	1.0	no data
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	+
Idle States	+	+
Thermal Monitoring	-	+
Demand Based Switching	-	no data
PAE	36 Bit	32 Bit
GPIO	no data	152

Security technologies

Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	no data
EDB	+	+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420 are enumerated here.

VT-d	+	no data
VT-x	+	no data
EPT	+	no data

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR2
Maximum memory size	16 GB	1 GB
Max memory channels	2	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	21 GB/s	6.4 GB/s

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card

N/A

PowerVR SGX540 (400 MHz)

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

no data

2

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420.

PCIe version	2.0	no data
PCI Express lanes	16	no data
USB revision	no data	2.0 OTG
Number of USB ports	no data	1
UART	no data	3

Pros & cons summary

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Recency	8 September 2009	1 January 2013
Physical cores	4	1
Threads	8	2
Chip lithography	45 nm	32 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	95 Watt	3 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-870 and Atom Z2420, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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