Intel Core i3-2120T vs AMD Athlon 64 FX-74

Comparative analysis of Intel Core i3-2120T and AMD Athlon 64 FX-74 processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Graphics, Graphics interfaces, Compatibility, Peripherals, 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).

Intel Core i3-2120T

AMD Athlon 64 FX-74

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Core i3-2120T

CPU is newer: launch date 4 year(s) 9 month(s) later
A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor: 32 nm vs 90 nm
3.6x lower typical power consumption: 35 Watt vs 125 Watt
Around 89% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1165 vs 617
Around 57% better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 1528 vs 972

Specifications (specs)
Launch date	September 2011 vs November 2006
Manufacturing process technology	32 nm vs 90 nm
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	35 Watt vs 125 Watt
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1165 vs 617
PassMark - CPU mark	1528 vs 972

Reasons to consider the AMD Athlon 64 FX-74

Around 15% higher clock speed: 3 GHz vs 2.6 GHz
2x more L2 cache, more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later

Maximum frequency	3 GHz vs 2.6 GHz
L2 cache	1024 KB vs 256 KB (per core)

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Core i3-2120T
CPU 2: AMD Athlon 64 FX-74

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

1165

617

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

1528

972

Name	Intel Core i3-2120T	AMD Athlon 64 FX-74
PassMark - Single thread mark	1165	617
PassMark - CPU mark	1528	972
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	466
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	1038
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)	1.611
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)	29.917
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)	0.213

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Core i3-2120T	AMD Athlon 64 FX-74
Essentials
Architecture codename	Sandy Bridge	Windsor
Launch date	September 2011	November 2006
Launch price (MSRP)	$50	$500
Place in performance rating	2786	2805
Price now	$113	$499.50
Processor Number	i3-2120T
Series	Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors
Status	Discontinued
Value for money (0-100)	8.24	0.88
Vertical segment	Desktop	Desktop
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	2.60 GHz
Bus Speed	5 GT/s DMI
Die size	131 mm	235 mm
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	128 KB
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	1024 KB
L3 cache	3072 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology	32 nm	90 nm
Maximum core temperature	65.0°C
Maximum frequency	2.6 GHz	3 GHz
Number of cores	2	2
Number of threads	4
Transistor count	504 million	227 million
Memory
Max memory channels	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	21 GB/s
Maximum memory size	32 GB
Supported memory types	DDR3 1066/1333	DDR1
Graphics
Device ID	0x102
Graphics base frequency	650 MHz
Graphics max dynamic frequency	1.10 GHz
Graphics max frequency	1.1 GHz
Intel® Clear Video HD technology
Intel® Flexible Display Interface (Intel® FDI)
Intel® InTru™ 3D technology
Intel® Quick Sync Video
Processor graphics	Intel® HD Graphics 2000
Graphics interfaces
Number of displays supported	2
Wireless Display (WiDi) support
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	1	1
Package Size	37.5mm x 37.5mm
Sockets supported	FCLGA1155	F
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	35 Watt	125 Watt
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes	16
PCI Express revision	2.0
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Identity Protection technology
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
Flexible Display interface (FDI)
Idle States
Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX
Intel 64
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Fast Memory Access
Intel® Flex Memory Access
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Intel® vPro™ Platform Eligibility
Thermal Monitoring
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)