AMD Phenom X4 B99 vs Intel Core i7-980

Comparative analysis of AMD Phenom X4 B99 and Intel Core i7-980 processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Compatibility, Memory, Security & Reliability, Advanced Technologies, Virtualization. Benchmark processor performance analysis: PassMark - Single thread mark, PassMark - CPU mark, 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 X4 B99

Intel Core i7-980

Differences

Reasons to consider the AMD Phenom X4 B99

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

L2 cache	2 MB vs 256 KB (per core)
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	95 Watt vs 130 Watt

Reasons to consider the Intel Core i7-980

2 more cores, run more applications at once: 6 vs 4
8 more threads: 12 vs 4
Around 12% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1539 vs 1377
2.7x better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 6941 vs 2536

Specifications (specs)
Number of cores	6 vs 4
Number of threads	12 vs 4
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1539 vs 1377
PassMark - CPU mark	6941 vs 2536

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: AMD Phenom X4 B99
CPU 2: Intel Core i7-980

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

1377

1539

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

2536

6941

Name	AMD Phenom X4 B99	Intel Core i7-980
PassMark - Single thread mark	1377	1539
PassMark - CPU mark	2536	6941
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)		18.942
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)		111.484
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)		0.821
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)		3.445
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)		19.686

Compare specifications (specs)

	AMD Phenom X4 B99	Intel Core i7-980
Essentials
Family	AMD Phenom
OPN Tray	HDXB99WFK4DGM
Place in performance rating	1833	1843
Series	AMD Business Class - AMD Phenom X4 Quad-Core	Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors
Vertical segment	Desktop	Desktop
Architecture codename		Gulftown
Launch date		June 2011
Launch price (MSRP)		$1,109
Price now		$198.99
Processor Number		i7-980
Status		Discontinued
Value for money (0-100)		12.83
Performance
Base frequency	3.3 GHz	3.33 GHz
L2 cache	2 MB	256 KB (per core)
Number of cores	4	6
Number of threads	4	12
Unlocked
64 bit support
Bus Speed		4.8 GT/s QPI
Die size		239 mm2
L1 cache		64 KB (per core)
L3 cache		12288 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology		32 nm
Maximum core temperature		68.8°C
Maximum frequency		3.60 GHz
Number of QPI Links		1
Transistor count		1170 million
VID voltage range		0.800V-1.300V
Compatibility
Sockets supported	AM3	FCLGA1366
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	95 Watt	130 Watt
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration		1
Package Size		45mm x 42.5mm
Memory
Max memory channels		3
Maximum memory size		24 GB
Supported memory types		DDR3 1066
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
Thermal Monitoring
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)