i3-8121U vs i3-3120M

Place in the ranking	2410	1684
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Market segment	Laptop	Laptop
Series	Intel Core i3	Intel Core i3
Power efficiency	2.89	9.33
Architecture codename	Ivy Bridge (2012−2013)	Coffee Lake-U (2018−2019)
Release date	30 September 2012 (12 years ago)	5 May 2018 (6 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$160	no data

Detailed specifications

Core i3-3120M and Core i3-8121U 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)	2 (Dual-core)
Threads	4	4
Base clock speed	2.5 GHz	2.2 GHz
Boost clock speed	2.5 GHz	3.2 GHz
Bus type	no data	OPI
Bus rate	5 GT/s	4 GT/s
Multiplier	no data	22
L1 cache	64K (per core)	64K (per core)
L2 cache	256K (per core)	256K (per core)
L3 cache	3 MB (shared)	4 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	22 nm	10 nm
Die size	118 mm²	123 mm²
Maximum core temperature	90C (PGA); 105C (BGA)	105 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	no data	72 °C
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-

Compatibility

Information on Core i3-3120M and Core i3-8121U 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	FCBGA1023,FCPGA988	Intel BGA1440
Power consumption (TDP)	35 Watt	15 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i3-3120M and Core i3-8121U. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® AVX	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512
AES-NI	-	+
AVX	+	+
vPro	no data	-
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
QuickAssist	no data	-
Speed Shift	no data	+
My WiFi	+	+
Turbo Boost Technology	-	2.0
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	+
Idle States	+	+
Thermal Monitoring	+	+
Flex Memory Access	+	+
Smart Response	no data	+
Demand Based Switching	-	-
FDI	+	no data
Fast Memory Access	+	no data
HD Audio	no data	+
RST	no data	+

Security technologies

Core i3-3120M and Core i3-8121U technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	-	-
EDB	+	+
Secure Key	no data	+
MPX	-	+
Identity Protection	+	-
SGX	no data	-
OS Guard	no data	+
Anti-Theft	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i3-3120M and Core i3-8121U are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i3-3120M and Core i3-8121U. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR4
Maximum memory size	32 GB	32 GB
Max memory channels	2	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	25.6 GB/s	38.397 GB/s

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card	Intel HD Graphics 4000	Iris Pro Plus
Quick Sync Video	+	-
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 i3-3120M and Core i3-8121U integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported	3	no data
eDP	+	no data
DisplayPort	+	-
HDMI	+	-
SDVO	+	no data
CRT	+	no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i3-3120M and Core i3-8121U.

PCIe version	2.0	3.0
PCI Express lanes	16	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.

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.

i3-3120M 1.07

i3-8121U 2.76
+158%

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.

i3-3120M 1697

i3-8121U 4391
+159%

GeekBench 5 Single-Core

GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.

i3-3120M 399

i3-8121U 1165
+192%

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.

i3-3120M 819

i3-8121U 2367
+189%

3DMark06 CPU

3DMark06 is a discontinued DirectX 9 benchmark suite from Futuremark. Its CPU part contains two scenarios, one dedicated to artificial intelligence pathfinding, another to game physics using PhysX package.

i3-3120M 3057

i3-8121U 4314
+41.1%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	1.07	2.76
Recency	30 September 2012	5 May 2018
Chip lithography	22 nm	10 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	35 Watt	15 Watt

i3-8121U has a 157.9% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 5 years, a 120% more advanced lithography process, and 133.3% lower power consumption.

The Core i3-8121U is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i3-3120M in performance tests.

Should you still have questions on choice between Core i3-3120M and Core i3-8121U, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.