Xeon E3-1260L vs i5-3550

Primary details

Comparing Core i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	1641	1745
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.56	1.73
Market segment	Desktop processor	Server
Series	Intel Core i5 (Desktop)	no data
Power efficiency	3.73	5.39
Architecture codename	Ivy Bridge (2012−2013)	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)
Release date	29 April 2012 (12 years ago)	3 April 2011 (13 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$205	$150

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Xeon E3-1260L has 209% better value for money than i5-3550.

Detailed specifications

Core i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L 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	4 (Quad-Core)	4 (Quad-Core)
Threads	4	8
Base clock speed	3.3 GHz	2.4 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.7 GHz	3.3 GHz
Bus rate	5 GT/s	no data
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256K (per core)	256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	6 MB (shared)	8 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	22 nm	32 nm
Die size	160 mm2	216 mm2
Maximum core temperature	67 °C	59 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	67 °C	no data
Number of transistors	1,400 million	1,160 million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-

Compatibility

Information on Core i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L 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
Socket	FCLGA1155	LGA1155
Power consumption (TDP)	77 Watt	45 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	2.0
Hyper-Threading Technology	-	+
Idle States	+	+
Thermal Monitoring	+	+
Flex Memory Access	no data	+
Demand Based Switching	no data	+
FDI	+	+
Fast Memory Access	no data	+

Security technologies

Core i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L 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 i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L are enumerated here.

VT-d	+	+
VT-x	+	+
EPT	+	+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR3
Maximum memory size	32 GB	32 GB
Max memory channels	2	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	25.6 GB/s	21 GB/s
ECC memory support	-	+

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card Compare	Intel HD Graphics 2500	Intel HD Graphics 2000
Quick Sync Video	+	+
Clear Video HD	+	+
Graphics max frequency	1.15 GHz	1.25 GHz
InTru 3D	+	+

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

3

2

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L.

PCIe version	3.0	2.0
PCI Express lanes	no data	20

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	3.03	2.56
Integrated graphics card	0.69	0.55
Recency	29 April 2012	3 April 2011
Threads	4	8
Chip lithography	22 nm	32 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	77 Watt	45 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-3550 and Xeon E3-1260L, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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