Atom C3508 vs i7-3520M

Place in the ranking	2003	2382
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Market segment	Laptop	Server
Series	Intel Core i7	Intel Atom
Power efficiency	4.88	9.49
Architecture codename	Ivy Bridge (2012−2013)	Goldmont (2016−2017)
Release date	3 June 2012 (12 years ago)	15 August 2017 (7 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$346	no data

Detailed specifications

Core i7-3520M and Atom C3508 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)	4 (Quad-Core)
Threads	4	4
Base clock speed	2.9 GHz	1.6 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.6 GHz	1.6 GHz
Bus rate	5 GT/s	no data
Multiplier	no data	16
L1 cache	64K (per core)	224 KB
L2 cache	256K (per core)	8 MB
L3 cache	4 MB (shared)	8 MB
Chip lithography	22 nm	14 nm
Die size	118 mm²	no data
Maximum core temperature	105 °C	90 °C
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-3520M and Atom C3508 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 (Uniprocessor)
Socket	FCBGA1023,FCPGA988	FCBGA1310
Power consumption (TDP)	35 Watt	11.5 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-3520M and Atom C3508. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

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

Security technologies

Core i7-3520M and Atom C3508 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	no data
EDB	+	+
Secure Boot	no data	+
Secure Key	+	+
Identity Protection	+	-
SGX	no data	-
OS Guard	no data	+
Anti-Theft	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-3520M and Atom C3508 are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-3520M and Atom C3508. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR4: 1866
Maximum memory size	32 GB	256 GB
Max memory channels	2	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	25.6 GB/s	29.871 GB/s
ECC memory support	-	+

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card	Intel HD Graphics 4000	no data
Quick Sync Video	+	-
Clear Video HD	+	no data
Graphics max frequency	1.25 GHz	no data
InTru 3D	+	no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-3520M and Atom C3508 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported	3	no data
eDP	+	no data
DisplayPort	+	-
HDMI	+	-
SDVO	+	no data
CRT	+	no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-3520M and Atom C3508.

PCIe version	3.0	3
PCI Express lanes	16	8
USB revision	no data	3
Total number of SATA ports	no data	8
Max number of SATA 6 Gb/s Ports	no data	8
Number of USB ports	no data	8
Integrated LAN	no data	4x2.5/1 GBE

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.

i7-3520M 1.84
+60%

Atom C3508 1.15

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.

i7-3520M 2868
+59.7%

Atom C3508 1796

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	1.84	1.15
Recency	3 June 2012	15 August 2017
Physical cores	2	4
Chip lithography	22 nm	14 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	35 Watt	11 Watt

i7-3520M has a 60% higher aggregate performance score.

Atom C3508, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 5 years, 100% more physical cores, a 57.1% more advanced lithography process, and 218.2% lower power consumption.

The Core i7-3520M is our recommended choice as it beats the Atom C3508 in performance tests.

Be aware that Core i7-3520M is a notebook processor while Atom C3508 is a server/workstation one.

Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-3520M and Atom C3508, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.