Pentium G3250 vs i5-2540M

Primary details

Comparing Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	2160	2308
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	no data	0.11
Market segment	Laptop	Desktop processor
Series	Intel Core i5	no data
Power efficiency	4.03	2.19
Architecture codename	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)	Haswell (2013−2015)
Release date	1 February 2011 (13 years ago)	21 July 2014 (10 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$266	$171

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250 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	2.6 GHz	3.2 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.3 GHz	3.2 GHz
Bus type	DMI 2.0	no data
Bus rate	4 × 5 GT/s	5 GT/s
Multiplier	26	no data
L1 cache	64K (per core)	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256K (per core)	256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	3 MB (shared)	3 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	32 nm	22 nm
Die size	149 mm2	177 mm2
Maximum core temperature	100 °C	no data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	no data	72 °C
Number of transistors	624 million	1,400 million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-

Compatibility

Information on Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250 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
Socket	FCBGA1023,PPGA988	FCLGA1150
Power consumption (TDP)	35 Watt	53 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® AVX	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2
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	-	no data
FDI	+	no data
Fast Memory Access	+	no data

Security technologies

Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250 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 i5-2540M and Pentium G3250 are enumerated here.

AMD-V	+	-
VT-d	+	-
VT-x	+	+
EPT	+	+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR3
Maximum memory size	16 GB	32 GB
Max memory channels	2	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	21.335 GB/s	21.3 GB/s
ECC memory support	-	+

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card Compare	Intel HD Graphics 3000	Intel HD Graphics for 4th Generation Intel Processors
Max video memory	no data	1.7 GB
Quick Sync Video	+	+
Clear Video HD	+	no data
Graphics max frequency	1.3 GHz	1.1 GHz
InTru 3D	+	no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported	2	3
eDP	+	+
DisplayPort	+	+
HDMI	+	+
DVI	no data	+
VGA	no data	+
SDVO	+	no data
CRT	+	no data

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250 integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

Max resolution over HDMI 1.4	no data	1920x1080@60Hz
Max resolution over eDP	no data	2560x1600@60Hz
Max resolution over DisplayPort	no data	2560x1600@60Hz
Max resolution over VGA	no data	1920x1200@60Hz

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250 integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX	no data	11.1/12
OpenGL	no data	4.3

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250.

PCIe version	2.0	Up to 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.

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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.

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Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	1.49	1.25
Integrated graphics card	0.66	0.77
Recency	1 February 2011	21 July 2014
Threads	4	2
Chip lithography	32 nm	22 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	35 Watt	53 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-2540M and Pentium G3250, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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