Atom x5-E3940 vs Core i3-2120

Primary details

Comparing Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in performance ranking	2183	2174
Place by popularity	89	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.14	no data
Market segment	Desktop processor	Laptop
Series	no data	5x Intel Atom
Architecture codename	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)	Apollo Lake (2016)
Release date	20 February 2011 (13 years ago)	30 August 2014 (9 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$95	no data
Current price	$76 (0.8x MSRP)	$546

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940 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	4	4
Base clock speed	3.3 GHz	1.6 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.3 GHz	1.8 GHz
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	56K (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	2 MB (shared)
L3 cache	3 MB (shared)	0 KB
Chip lithography	32 nm	14 nm
Die size	131 mm2	no data
Maximum core temperature	69 °C	no data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	no data	103 °C
Number of transistors	504 million	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-
Unlocked multiplier	No	No

Compatibility

Information on Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940 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 (Uniprocessor)
Socket	FCLGA1155	Intel BGA 1296
Power consumption (TDP)	65 Watt	10 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

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

Security technologies

Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

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

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940 are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR3-1866
Maximum memory size	32 GB	8 GB
Max memory channels	2	no data
Maximum memory bandwidth	21 GB/s	no data

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card Compare	Intel HD Graphics 2000	Intel HD Graphics 500
Quick Sync Video	+	no data
Clear Video HD	+	no data
Graphics max frequency	1.1 GHz	no data
InTru 3D	+	no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

2

no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940.

PCIe version	2.0	2.0
PCI Express lanes	16	4

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.

Atom x5-E3940 outperforms Core i3-2120 by 2% based on our aggregated benchmark results.

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Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	1.26	1.28
Recency	20 February 2011	30 August 2014
Physical cores	2	4
Chip lithography	32 nm	14 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	65 Watt	10 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Core i3-2120 and Atom x5-E3940, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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