Ryzen 9 3950X vs i5-5250U

VS

Aggregate performance score

Core i5-5250U
2015
2 cores / 4 threads, 15 Watt
1.59
Ryzen 9 3950X
2019
16 cores / 32 threads, 105 Watt
25.32
+1492%

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Core i5-5250U by a whopping 1492% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking2120204
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluationno data17.07
Market segmentLaptopDesktop processor
SeriesIntel Core i5AMD Ryzen 9
Power efficiency9.6721.99
Architecture codenameBroadwell-U (2015)Matisse (Zen 2) (2019−2020)
Release date1 March 2015 (9 years ago)11 June 2019 (5 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$315$799

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

no data

Detailed specifications

Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X 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 cores2 (Dual-core)16 (Hexadeca-Core)
Threads432
Base clock speed1.6 GHz3.5 GHz
Boost clock speed2.7 GHz4.7 GHz
Bus rate5 GT/sno data
L1 cache64K (per core)1 MB
L2 cache256K (per core)8 MB
L3 cache3 MB (shared)64 MB
Chip lithography14 nm7 nm, 12 nm
Die size133 mm22 x 72 mm + 125 mm (IO-Die) mm2
Maximum core temperature105 °Cno data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)105 °Cno data
Number of transistors1900 Million19,200 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility-+
Unlocked multiplier-+

Compatibility

Information on Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X 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 configuration11 (Uniprocessor)
SocketFCBGA1168AM4
Power consumption (TDP)15 Watt105 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX286x MMX(+), SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A,-64, AMD-V, AES, AVX, AVX2, FMA3, SHA, Precision Boost 2
AES-NI++
AVX++
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)+no data
Turbo Boost Technology2.0no data
Hyper-Threading Technology+no data
Idle States+no data
Thermal Monitoring+-
Flex Memory Access+no data
Smart Response+no data
FDI+no data
Fast Memory Access+no data
Precision Boost 2no data+

Security technologies

Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT-no data
EDB+no data
Secure Key+no data
Identity Protection+-
OS Guard+no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR3DDR4 Dual-channel
Maximum memory size16 GB128 GB
Max memory channels2no data
Maximum memory bandwidth25.6 GB/s51.196 GB/s
ECC memory support-+

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardIntel HD Graphics 6000-
Max video memory16 GB-
Quick Sync Video+-
Clear Video+-
Clear Video HD+-
Graphics max frequency950 MHz-
InTru 3D+-

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported3-
eDP+-
DisplayPort+-
HDMI+-

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

Max resolution over HDMI 1.42560X1600@60Hz-
Max resolution over DisplayPort3840x2160@60Hz-

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX11.2/12-
OpenGL4.3-

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X.

PCIe version2.0no data
PCI Express lanes12no 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.

i5-5250U 1.59
Ryzen 9 3950X 25.32
+1492%

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.

i5-5250U 2437
Ryzen 9 3950X 38746
+1490%

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.

i5-5250U 817
Ryzen 9 3950X 1734
+112%

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.

i5-5250U 1569
Ryzen 9 3950X 10819
+590%

Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core

Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.

i5-5250U 4104
Ryzen 9 3950X 6102
+48.7%

Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.

i5-5250U 8721
Ryzen 9 3950X 53396
+512%

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.

i5-5250U 19.5
Ryzen 9 3950X 4.11
+374%

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.

i5-5250U 3
Ryzen 9 3950X 44
+1466%

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.

i5-5250U 260
Ryzen 9 3950X 4002
+1439%

Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.

i5-5250U 107
Ryzen 9 3950X 209
+95.3%

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R11.5 is an old benchmark by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version loads a single thread with ray tracing to render a glossy room full of crystal spheres and light sources.

i5-5250U 1.16
Ryzen 9 3950X 2.37
+104%

TrueCrypt AES

TrueCrypt is a discontinued piece of software that was widely used for on-the-fly-encryption of disk partitions, now superseded by VeraCrypt. It contains several embedded performance tests, one of them being TrueCrypt AES, which measures data encryption speed using AES algorithm. Result is encryption speed in gigabytes per second.

i5-5250U 1.5
Ryzen 9 3950X 10.8
+620%

x264 encoding pass 2

x264 Pass 2 is a slower variant of x264 video compression that produces a variable bit rate output file, which results in better quality since the higher bit rate is used when it is needed more. Benchmark result is still measured in frames per second.  

i5-5250U 16
Ryzen 9 3950X 168
+921%

x264 encoding pass 1

x264 version 4.0 is a video encoding benchmark uses MPEG 4 x264 compression method to compress a sample HD (720p) video. Pass 1 is a faster variant that produces a constant bit rate output file. Its result is measured in frames per second, which means how many frames of the source video file were encoded per second.  

i5-5250U 89
Ryzen 9 3950X 265
+199%

WinRAR 4.0

WinRAR 4.0 is an outdated version of a popular file archiver. It contains an internal speed test, using 'Best' setting of RAR compression on large chunks of randomly generated data. Its results are measured in kilobytes per second.

i5-5250U 2423
Ryzen 9 3950X 7409
+206%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 1.59 25.32
Recency 1 March 2015 11 June 2019
Physical cores 2 16
Threads 4 32
Chip lithography 14 nm 7 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 15 Watt 105 Watt

i5-5250U has 600% lower power consumption.

Ryzen 9 3950X, on the other hand, has a 1492.5% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 4 years, 700% more physical cores and 700% more threads, and a 100% more advanced lithography process.

The Ryzen 9 3950X is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i5-5250U in performance tests.

Be aware that Core i5-5250U is a notebook processor while Ryzen 9 3950X is a desktop one.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-5250U and Ryzen 9 3950X, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

Vote for your favorite

Do you think we are right or mistaken in our choice? Vote by clicking "Like" button near your favorite CPU.


Intel Core i5-5250U
Core i5-5250U
AMD Ryzen 9 3950X
Ryzen 9 3950X

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Community ratings

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Questions & comments

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