i3-3120M vs Pentium G3250

Primary details

Comparing Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	2308	2425
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.11	no data
Market segment	Desktop processor	Laptop
Series	no data	Intel Core i3
Power efficiency	2.19	2.90
Architecture codename	Haswell (2013−2015)	Ivy Bridge (2012−2013)
Release date	21 July 2014 (10 years ago)	30 September 2012 (12 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$171	$160

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M 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	3.2 GHz	2.5 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.2 GHz	2.5 GHz
Bus rate	5 GT/s	5 GT/s
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	64K (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	256K (per core)
L3 cache	3 MB (shared)	3 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	22 nm	22 nm
Die size	177 mm2	118 mm2
Maximum core temperature	no data	90C (PGA); 105C (BGA)
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	72 °C	no data
Number of transistors	1,400 million	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-

Compatibility

Information on Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M 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	FCLGA1150	FCBGA1023,FCPGA988
Power consumption (TDP)	53 Watt	35 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M. 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	+	+
Thermal Monitoring	+	+
Flex Memory Access	no data	+
Demand Based Switching	no data	-
FDI	no data	+
Fast Memory Access	no data	+

Security technologies

Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M 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 Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M. 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	21.3 GB/s	25.6 GB/s
ECC memory support	+	-

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card Compare	Intel HD Graphics for 4th Generation Intel Processors	Intel HD Graphics 4000
Max video memory	1.7 GB	no data
Quick Sync Video	+	+
Clear Video HD	no data	+
Graphics max frequency	1.1 GHz	1.1 GHz
InTru 3D	no data	+

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M integrated GPUs.

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

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

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

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX	11.1/12	no data
OpenGL	4.3	no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M.

PCIe version	Up to 3.0	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.

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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	1.25	1.07
Integrated graphics card	0.77	1.18
Recency	21 July 2014	30 September 2012
Threads	2	4
Power consumption (TDP)	53 Watt	35 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Pentium G3250 and Core i3-3120M, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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