i3-3217U vs Pentium 3550M
Aggregate performance score
Pentium 3550M outperforms Core i3-3217U by a small 7% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 2540 | 2601 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Series | Intel Pentium | Intel Core i3 |
| Architecture codename | Haswell (2013−2015) | Ivy Bridge (2012−2013) |
| Release date | 1 September 2013 (11 years ago) | 1 June 2012 (12 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $134 | $225 |
Detailed specifications
Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U 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 | 2 | 4 |
| Base clock speed | 2.3 GHz | 1.8 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 2.3 GHz | 1.8 GHz |
| Bus rate | 5 GT/s | 5 GT/s |
| L1 cache | 64K (per core) | 64K (per core) |
| L2 cache | 256K (per core) | 256K (per core) |
| L3 cache | 2 MB (shared) | 3 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | 22 nm | 22 nm |
| Die size | 118 mm2 | 118 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | 100 °C | 105 °C |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | 105 °C | no data |
| Number of transistors | 1,400 million | no data |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
Compatibility
Information on Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U 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 | FCPGA946 | FCBGA1023 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 37 Watt | 17 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2 | Intel® AVX |
| AVX | - | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| My WiFi | no data | + |
| Turbo Boost Technology | - | - |
| 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 | + |
| Status | Discontinued | Discontinued |
Security technologies
Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | - | - |
| EDB | + | + |
| Secure Key | + | no data |
| Identity Protection | - | + |
| Anti-Theft | - | + |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | + | - |
| VT-d | - | - |
| VT-x | + | + |
| EPT | + | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | DDR3/L/-RS 1333/1600 |
| Maximum memory size | 32 GB | 32 GB |
| Max memory channels | 2 | 2 |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 25.6 GB/s | 25.6 GB/s |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | Intel® HD Graphics for 4th Generation Intel® Processors | Intel HD Graphics 4000 |
| Quick Sync Video | - | + |
| Clear Video HD | - | + |
| Graphics max frequency | 1.1 GHz | 1.05 GHz |
| InTru 3D | no data | + |
Graphics interfaces
Available interfaces and connections of Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U integrated GPUs.
| Number of displays supported | 3 | 3 |
| eDP | + | + |
| DisplayPort | + | + |
| HDMI | + | + |
| VGA | + | no data |
| SDVO | no data | + |
| CRT | no data | + |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U.
| PCIe version | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| 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.
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.
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.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 0.86 | 0.80 |
| Recency | 1 September 2013 | 1 June 2012 |
| Threads | 2 | 4 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 37 Watt | 17 Watt |
Pentium 3550M has a 7.5% higher aggregate performance score, and an age advantage of 1 year.
i3-3217U, on the other hand, has 100% more threads, and 117.6% lower power consumption.
Given the minimal performance differences, no clear winner can be declared between Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U.
Should you still have questions on choice between Pentium 3550M and Core i3-3217U, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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