Core i5-2500 vs Xeon Gold 5120

Primary details

Comparing Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in performance ranking	639	1632
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	16.44	0.66
Market segment	Server	Desktop processor
Series	Intel Xeon Gold	no data
Architecture codename	Skylake (server) (2017−2019)	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)
Release date	11 July 2017 (6 years ago)	9 January 2011 (13 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$1,555	$85
Current price	$379 (0.2x MSRP)	$58 (0.7x MSRP)

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Xeon Gold 5120 has 2391% better value for money than i5-2500.

Detailed specifications

Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500 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	14 (Tetradeca-Core)	4 (Quad-Core)
Threads	28	4
Base clock speed	2.2 GHz	3.3 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.2 GHz	3.7 GHz
L1 cache	896 KB	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	14 MB	256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	19.25 MB	6144 KB (shared)
Chip lithography	14 nm	32 nm
Die size	no data	216 mm2
Maximum core temperature	81 °C	73 °C
Number of transistors	no data	1,160 million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	+	-
Unlocked multiplier	No	No

Compatibility

Information on Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500 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	4 (Multiprocessor)	1
Socket	FCLGA3647	LGA1155
Power consumption (TDP)	105 Watt	95 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
vPro	+	no data
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Speed Shift	+	no data
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	2.0
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	-
TSX	+	no data
Idle States	no data	+
Thermal Monitoring	no data	+
Flex Memory Access	no data	+
Turbo Boost Max 3.0	-	no data
FDI	no data	+
Fast Memory Access	no data	+
Status	Discontinued	Discontinued

Security technologies

Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	+
EDB	+	+
Identity Protection	no data	+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500 are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4-2400	DDR3
Maximum memory size	768 GB	32 GB
Max memory channels	6	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	115.212 GB/s	21 GB/s
ECC memory support	+	-

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card	no data	Intel HD Graphics 2000
Quick Sync Video	no data	+
Clear Video HD	no data	+
Graphics max frequency	no data	1.1 GHz
InTru 3D	no data	+

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

no data

2

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500.

PCIe version	3.0	2.0
PCI Express lanes	48	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.

Xeon Gold 5120 outperforms Core i5-2500 by 328% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

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Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	11.43	2.67
Recency	11 July 2017	9 January 2011
Physical cores	14	4
Threads	28	4
Cost	$1555	$85
Chip lithography	14 nm	32 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	105 Watt	95 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Xeon Gold 5120 and Core i5-2500, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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