Core i3-12100F vs Core 2 Duo E6420

Primary details

Comparing Core 2 Duo E6420 and Core i3-12100F processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	not rated	858
Place by popularity	not in top-100	5
Market segment	Desktop processor	Desktop processor
Power efficiency	no data	14.49
Architecture codename	Conroe (2006−2007)	Alder Lake-S (2022)
Release date	April 2007 (17 years ago)	January 2022 (2 years ago)

Detailed specifications

Core 2 Duo E6420 and Core i3-12100F 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)	4 (Quad-Core)
Threads	2	8
Base clock speed	2.13 GHz	3.3 GHz
Boost clock speed	2.13 GHz	4.3 GHz
Bus rate	1066 MHz	no data
L1 cache	64 KB	80K (per core)
L2 cache	4 MB	1.25 MB (per core)
L3 cache	0 KB	12 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	65 nm	Intel 7 nm
Die size	111 mm2	163 mm2
Maximum core temperature	60 °C	100 °C
Number of transistors	167 million	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	+
VID voltage range	0.85V-1.5V	no data

Compatibility

Information on Core 2 Duo E6420 and Core i3-12100F 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	PLGA775	FCLGA1700
Power consumption (TDP)	65 Watt	58 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core 2 Duo E6420 and Core i3-12100F. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	no data	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2
AES-NI	-	+
AVX	-	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Speed Shift	no data	+
Turbo Boost Technology	-	2.0
Hyper-Threading Technology	-	+
TSX	-	+
Idle States	+	+
Thermal Monitoring	+	+
Demand Based Switching	-	no data
Turbo Boost Max 3.0	no data	-
FSB parity	-	no data
Deep Learning Boost	-	+

Security technologies

Core 2 Duo E6420 and Core i3-12100F technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	-	+
EDB	+	+
Secure Key	no data	+
OS Guard	no data	+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core 2 Duo E6420 and Core i3-12100F are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core 2 Duo E6420 and Core i3-12100F. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR1, DDR2, DDR3	DDR5-4800, DDR4-3200
Maximum memory size	no data	128 GB
Max memory channels	no data	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	no data	76.8 GB/s

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core 2 Duo E6420 and Core i3-12100F.

PCIe version	no data	5.0 and 4.0
PCI Express lanes	no data	20

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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Pros & cons summary

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Physical cores	2	4
Threads	2	8
Power consumption (TDP)	65 Watt	58 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Core 2 Duo E6420 and Core i3-12100F, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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