AMD Phenom II X4 850 vs Intel Core i7-970

Comparative analysis of AMD Phenom II X4 850 and Intel Core i7-970 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, CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s).

AMD Phenom II X4 850

Intel Core i7-970

Differences

Reasons to consider the AMD Phenom II X4 850

CPU is newer: launch date 11 month(s) later
Around 33% more L1 cache; more data can be stored in the L1 cache for quick access later
Around 33% more L2 cache; more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later
Around 37% lower typical power consumption: 95 Watt vs 130 Watt

Launch date	June 2011 vs July 2010
L1 cache	512 KB vs 64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	2 MB vs 256 KB (per core)
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	95 Watt vs 130 Watt

Reasons to consider the Intel Core i7-970

2 more cores, run more applications at once: 6 vs 4
8 more threads: 12 vs 4
Around 5% higher clock speed: 3.46 GHz vs 3.3 GHz
A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor: 32 nm vs 45 nm
Around 19% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1467 vs 1230
2.7x better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 6546 vs 2400
Around 62% better performance in Geekbench 4 - Single Core: 592 vs 366
2.6x better performance in Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core: 3217 vs 1217

Specifications (specs)
Number of cores	6 vs 4
Number of threads	12 vs 4
Maximum frequency	3.46 GHz vs 3.3 GHz
Manufacturing process technology	32 nm vs 45 nm
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1467 vs 1230
PassMark - CPU mark	6546 vs 2400
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	592 vs 366
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	3217 vs 1217

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: AMD Phenom II X4 850
CPU 2: Intel Core i7-970

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

1230

1467

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

2400

6546

Geekbench 4 - Single Core

CPU 1

CPU 2

366

592

Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core

CPU 1

CPU 2

1217

3217

Name	AMD Phenom II X4 850	Intel Core i7-970
PassMark - Single thread mark	1230	1467
PassMark - CPU mark	2400	6546
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	366	592
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	1217	3217
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)		1.559
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)		49.006
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)		0.506
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)		2.584
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)		6.816

Compare specifications (specs)

	AMD Phenom II X4 850	Intel Core i7-970
Essentials
Architecture codename	Propus	Gulftown
Family	AMD Phenom
Launch date	June 2011	July 2010
Launch price (MSRP)	$111	$662
OPN PIB	HDX850WFGMBOX
OPN Tray	HDX850WFK42GM
Place in performance rating	2463	2478
Price now	$64.99	$148.99
Series	AMD Phenom II X4	Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors
Value for money (0-100)	16.08	16.59
Vertical segment	Desktop	Desktop
Processor Number		i7-970
Status		Discontinued
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	3.3 GHz	3.20 GHz
Die size	169 mm	239 mm2
L1 cache	512 KB	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	2 MB	256 KB (per core)
Manufacturing process technology	45 nm	32 nm
Maximum frequency	3.3 GHz	3.46 GHz
Number of cores	4	6
Number of threads	4	12
Transistor count	300 million	1170 million
Unlocked
Bus Speed		4.8 GT/s QPI
L3 cache		12288 KB (shared)
Maximum core temperature		67.9°C
Number of QPI Links		1
VID voltage range		0.800V-1.375V
Memory
Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR3 800/1066
Max memory channels		3
Maximum memory bandwidth		25.6 GB/s
Maximum memory size		24 GB
Compatibility
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	1	1
Sockets supported	AM3	FCLGA1366
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	95 Watt	130 Watt
Low Halogen Options Available
Package Size		42.5mm X 45.0mm
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
Idle States
Instruction set extensions		Intel® SSE4.2
Intel 64
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Demand Based Switching
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Physical Address Extensions (PAE)		36-bit
Thermal Monitoring
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)