AMD Phenom II X3 720 vs Intel Pentium D 960

Comparative analysis of AMD Phenom II X3 720 and Intel Pentium D 960 processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Compatibility, Security & Reliability, Advanced Technologies, Virtualization. Benchmark processor performance analysis: PassMark - Single thread mark, PassMark - CPU mark, Geekbench 4 - Single Core, Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core.

 

Differences

Reasons to consider the AMD Phenom II X3 720

  • CPU is newer: launch date 3 year(s) 8 month(s) later
  • 1 more cores, run more applications at once: 3 vs 2
  • A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor: 45 nm vs 65 nm
  • 13.7x more L1 cache, more data can be stored in the L1 cache for quick access later
  • Around 37% lower typical power consumption: 95 Watt vs 130 Watt
  • Around 41% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1105 vs 782
  • Around 95% better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 1575 vs 807
Specifications (specs)
Launch date January 2010 vs May 2006
Number of cores 3 vs 2
Manufacturing process technology 45 nm vs 65 nm
L1 cache 128 KB (per core) vs 28 KB
Thermal Design Power (TDP) 95 Watt vs 130 Watt
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark 1105 vs 782
PassMark - CPU mark 1575 vs 807

Reasons to consider the Intel Pentium D 960

  • Around 29% higher clock speed: 3.6 GHz vs 2.8 GHz
  • 2.7x more L2 cache, more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later
Maximum frequency 3.6 GHz vs 2.8 GHz
L2 cache 4096 KB vs 512 KB (per core)
Max number of CPUs in a configuration 2 vs 1

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: AMD Phenom II X3 720
CPU 2: Intel Pentium D 960

PassMark - Single thread mark
CPU 1
CPU 2
1105
782
PassMark - CPU mark
CPU 1
CPU 2
1575
807
Name AMD Phenom II X3 720 Intel Pentium D 960
PassMark - Single thread mark 1105 782
PassMark - CPU mark 1575 807
Geekbench 4 - Single Core 374
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core 968

Compare specifications (specs)

AMD Phenom II X3 720 Intel Pentium D 960

Essentials

Architecture codename Heka Presler
Launch date January 2010 May 2006
Launch price (MSRP) $75
Place in performance rating 2574 2592
Price now $69.99
Value for money (0-100) 11.28
Vertical segment Desktop Desktop
Processor Number 960
Series Legacy Intel® Pentium® Processor
Status Discontinued

Performance

64 bit support
Die size 258 mm 162 mm2
L1 cache 128 KB (per core) 28 KB
L2 cache 512 KB (per core) 4096 KB
L3 cache 6144 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology 45 nm 65 nm
Maximum frequency 2.8 GHz 3.6 GHz
Number of cores 3 2
Transistor count 758 million 376 million
Base frequency 3.60 GHz
Bus Speed 800 MHz FSB
Maximum core temperature C1=68.6°C, D0=63.4°C
VID voltage range 1.200V-1.3375V

Memory

Supported memory types DDR3 DDR1, DDR2, DDR3

Compatibility

Max number of CPUs in a configuration 1 2
Sockets supported AM3 PLGA775
Thermal Design Power (TDP) 95 Watt 130 Watt
Low Halogen Options Available
Package Size 37.5mm x 37.5mm

Security & Reliability

Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)

Advanced Technologies

Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
FSB parity
Idle States
Intel 64
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Demand Based Switching
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Physical Address Extensions (PAE) 32-bit
Thermal Monitoring

Virtualization

Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)