Atom Z500 vs i5-2520M
Aggregate performance score
Core i5-2520M outperforms Atom Z500 by a whopping 781% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 2221 | 3299 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Series | Intel Core i5 | Intel Atom |
| Power efficiency | 3.81 | 23.30 |
| Architecture codename | Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) | Silverthorne (2008−2010) |
| Release date | 1 February 2011 (13 years ago) | 2 April 2008 (16 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $225 | $45 |
Detailed specifications
Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500 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) | 1 (Single-Core) |
| Threads | 4 | 1 |
| Base clock speed | 2.5 GHz | no data |
| Boost clock speed | 3.2 GHz | 0.8 GHz |
| Bus type | DMI 2.0 | FSB |
| Bus rate | 4 × 5 GT/s | 400 MT/s |
| Multiplier | 25 | 8 |
| L1 cache | 64K (per core) | 56 KB |
| L2 cache | 256K (per core) | 512 KB |
| L3 cache | 3 MB (shared) | 0 KB |
| Chip lithography | 32 nm | 45 nm |
| Die size | 149 mm2 | 24.18 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | 100 °C | 90 °C |
| Number of transistors | 624 million | 47 Million |
| 64 bit support | + | - |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
| VID voltage range | no data | 0.80 -1.1V |
Compatibility
Information on Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500 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 (Uniprocessor) |
| Socket | PPGA988 | PBGA441 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 35 Watt | 0.65 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® AVX | Intel® SSE2, Intel® SSE3, Intel® SSSE3 |
| AES-NI | + | - |
| FMA | + | - |
| AVX | + | - |
| vPro | + | no data |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| My WiFi | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | - |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | + |
| Idle States | + | + |
| Thermal Monitoring | + | + |
| Flex Memory Access | + | no data |
| Demand Based Switching | - | + |
| FDI | + | no data |
| Fast Memory Access | + | no data |
| FSB parity | no data | - |
Security technologies
Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | - |
| EDB | + | + |
| Identity Protection | + | - |
| Anti-Theft | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500 are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | + | - |
| VT-d | + | - |
| VT-x | + | - |
| EPT | + | no data |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | no data |
| Maximum memory size | 16 GB | no data |
| Max memory channels | 2 | no data |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 21.335 GB/s | no data |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | Intel HD Graphics 3000 | - |
| Quick Sync Video | + | - |
| Clear Video HD | + | - |
| Graphics max frequency | 1.3 GHz | - |
| InTru 3D | + | - |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500 integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | 2 | - |
| eDP | + | - |
| DisplayPort | + | - |
| HDMI | + | - |
| SDVO | + | - |
| CRT | + | - |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500.
| PCIe version | 2.0 | no data |
| PCI Express lanes | 16 | 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.
wPrime 32
wPrime 32M is a math multi-thread processor test, which calculates square roots of first 32 million integer numbers. Its result is measured in seconds, so that the less is benchmark result, the faster the processor.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 1.41 | 0.16 |
| Recency | 1 February 2011 | 2 April 2008 |
| Physical cores | 2 | 1 |
| Threads | 4 | 1 |
| Chip lithography | 32 nm | 45 nm |
i5-2520M has a 781.3% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 2 years, 100% more physical cores and 300% more threads, and a 40.6% more advanced lithography process.
The Core i5-2520M is our recommended choice as it beats the Atom Z500 in performance tests.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-2520M and Atom Z500, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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