i3-2120 vs Ryzen 5 3500

Primary details

Comparing Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	940	2323
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	no data	0.14
Market segment	Desktop processor	Desktop processor
Series	AMD Ryzen 5	no data
Power efficiency	11.72	1.79
Architecture codename	Zen 2 (2017−2020)	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)
Release date	no data	20 February 2011 (13 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	no data	$95

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120 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	6 (Hexa-Core)	2 (Dual-core)
Threads	6	4
Base clock speed	3.6 GHz	3.3 GHz
Boost clock speed	4.1 GHz	3.3 GHz
Bus rate	no data	5 GT/s
L1 cache	384 KB	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	3 MB	256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	16 MB	3 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	7 nm, 12 nm	32 nm
Die size	no data	131 mm2
Maximum core temperature	no data	69 °C
Number of transistors	no data	504 million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-
Unlocked multiplier	+	-

Compatibility

Information on Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120 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	Socket AM4	FCLGA1155
Power consumption (TDP)	65 Watt	65 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	no data	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX
AES-NI	+	-
AVX	+	-
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	no data	+
Turbo Boost Technology	no data	-
Hyper-Threading Technology	no data	+
Idle States	no data	+
Thermal Monitoring	-	+
Flex Memory Access	no data	+
FDI	no data	+
Fast Memory Access	no data	+
Precision Boost 2	+	no data

Security technologies

Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	no data	+
EDB	no data	+
Identity Protection	-	+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120 are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4-3200	DDR3
Maximum memory size	128 GB	32 GB
Max memory channels	2	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	51.196 GB/s	21 GB/s

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card	-	Intel HD Graphics 2000
Quick Sync Video	-	+
Clear Video HD	-	+
Graphics max frequency	-	1.1 GHz
InTru 3D	-	+

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

-

2

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120.

PCIe version	no data	2.0
PCI Express lanes	no data	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.

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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.

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Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	8.05	1.23
Physical cores	6	2
Threads	6	4
Chip lithography	7 nm	32 nm

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Should you still have questions on choice between Ryzen 5 3500 and Core i3-2120, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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