Core 2 Duo T9550 vs Core i3-3240

Place in the ranking	2163	2380
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	2.62	no data
Market segment	Desktop processor	Laptop
Series	no data	Intel Core 2 Duo
Power efficiency	2.51	3.08
Architecture codename	Ivy Bridge (2012−2013)	Penryn (2008−2011)
Release date	3 September 2012 (12 years ago)	1 January 2009 (15 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$75	$316

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

no data

Detailed specifications

Core i3-3240 and Core 2 Duo T9550 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	2
Base clock speed	3.4 GHz	2.66 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.4 GHz	2.66 GHz
Bus rate	5 GT/s	1066 MHz
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	128 KB
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	6 MB
L3 cache	3 MB (shared)	6 MB L2 Cache
Chip lithography	22 nm	45 nm
Die size	94 mm²	107 mm²
Maximum core temperature	no data	105 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	65 °C	no data
Number of transistors	no data	410 Million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-
VID voltage range	no data	1.05V-1.212V

Compatibility

Information on Core i3-3240 and Core 2 Duo T9550 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	no data
Socket	FCLGA1155	BGA479,PGA478
Power consumption (TDP)	55 Watt	35 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i3-3240 and Core 2 Duo T9550. 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
AVX	+	-
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
My WiFi	+	no data
Turbo Boost Technology	-	-
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	-
Idle States	+	no data
Thermal Monitoring	+	-
Demand Based Switching	no data	-
FDI	+	no data
FSB parity	no data	-

Security technologies

Core i3-3240 and Core 2 Duo T9550 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	+
EDB	+	+
Secure Key	-	no data
Identity Protection	+	-
Anti-Theft	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i3-3240 and Core 2 Duo T9550 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 i3-3240 and Core 2 Duo T9550. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	no data
Maximum memory size	32 GB	no data
Max memory channels	2	no data
Maximum memory bandwidth	25.6 GB/s	no data

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card	Intel HD Graphics 2500	no data
Quick Sync Video	+	-
Clear Video HD	+	no data
Graphics max frequency	1.05 GHz	no data
InTru 3D	+	no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i3-3240 and Core 2 Duo T9550 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i3-3240 and Core 2 Duo T9550.

PCIe version

2.0

no data

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.

i3-3240 1.46
+28.1%

Core 2 Duo T9550 1.14

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.

i3-3240 2323
+28.8%

Core 2 Duo T9550 1804

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.

i3-3240 547
+72%

Core 2 Duo T9550 318

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.

i3-3240 1119
+116%

Core 2 Duo T9550 517

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	1.46	1.14
Recency	3 September 2012	1 January 2009
Threads	4	2
Chip lithography	22 nm	45 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	55 Watt	35 Watt

i3-3240 has a 28.1% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 3 years, 100% more threads, and a 104.5% more advanced lithography process.

Core 2 Duo T9550, on the other hand, has 57.1% lower power consumption.

The Core i3-3240 is our recommended choice as it beats the Core 2 Duo T9550 in performance tests.

Note that Core i3-3240 is a desktop processor while Core 2 Duo T9550 is a notebook one.

Should you still have questions on choice between Core i3-3240 and Core 2 Duo T9550, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.