AMD Turion II M520 vs Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550s

Comparative analysis of AMD Turion II M520 and Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550s processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Compatibility, Advanced Technologies, Memory, Security & Reliability, 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).

AMD Turion II M520

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550s

Differences

Reasons to consider the AMD Turion II M520

CPU is newer: launch date 2 year(s) 8 month(s) later
Around 86% lower typical power consumption: 35 Watt vs 65 Watt

Launch date	10 September 2009 vs January 2007
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	35 Watt vs 65 Watt

Reasons to consider the Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550s

2 more cores, run more applications at once: 4 vs 2
Around 23% higher clock speed: 2.83 GHz vs 2.3 GHz
2x more L1 cache, more data can be stored in the L1 cache for quick access later
12x more L2 cache, more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later

Number of cores	4 vs 2
Maximum frequency	2.83 GHz vs 2.3 GHz
L1 cache	256 KB vs 128 KB
L2 cache	12288 KB vs 1024 KB

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: AMD Turion II M520
CPU 2: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550s

Name	AMD Turion II M520	Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550s
PassMark - Single thread mark	925
PassMark - CPU mark	855
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	1331
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	2216
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)	1.279
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)	5.288
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)	0.091

Compare specifications (specs)

	AMD Turion II M520	Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550s
Essentials
Architecture codename	Caspian	Yorkfield
Launch date	10 September 2009	January 2007
Place in performance rating	2661	not rated
Series	AMD Turion II	Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors
Vertical segment	Laptop	Desktop
Processor Number		Q9550S
Status		Discontinued
Performance
64 bit support
Front-side bus (FSB)	3600 MHz
L1 cache	128 KB	256 KB
L2 cache	1024 KB	12288 KB
Manufacturing process technology	45 nm	45 nm
Maximum frequency	2.3 GHz	2.83 GHz
Number of cores	2	4
Number of threads	2
Base frequency		2.83 GHz
Bus Speed		1333 MHz FSB
Die size		214 mm2
Maximum case temperature (TCase)		76 °C
Maximum core temperature		76.3°C
Transistor count		820 million
VID voltage range		0.8500V-1.3625V
Compatibility
Sockets supported	Socket S1 (s1g3) 638-pin	LGA775
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	35 Watt	65 Watt
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration		1
Package Size		37.5mm x 37.5mm
Advanced Technologies
PowerNow
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
Thermal Monitoring
Memory
Supported memory types		DDR1, DDR2, DDR3
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)