Intel Core i3-8300 vs AMD Athlon X4 970

Comparative analysis of Intel Core i3-8300 and AMD Athlon X4 970 processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Graphics, Graphics interfaces, Graphics image quality, Graphics API support, 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, GFXBench 4.0 - Car Chase Offscreen (Frames), GFXBench 4.0 - Manhattan (Frames), GFXBench 4.0 - T-Rex (Frames), GFXBench 4.0 - Car Chase Offscreen (Fps), GFXBench 4.0 - Manhattan (Fps), GFXBench 4.0 - T-Rex (Fps).

Intel Core i3-8300

AMD Athlon X4 970

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Core i3-8300

CPU is newer: launch date 6 month(s) later
A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor: 14 nm vs 28 nm
Around 5% lower typical power consumption: 62 Watt vs 65 Watt
Around 33% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 2260 vs 1700
Around 65% better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 6305 vs 3811

Specifications (specs)
Launch date	February 2018 vs 27 July 2017
Manufacturing process technology	14 nm vs 28 nm
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	62 Watt vs 65 Watt
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	2260 vs 1700
PassMark - CPU mark	6305 vs 3811

Reasons to consider the AMD Athlon X4 970

Processor is unlocked, an unlocked multiplier allows for easier overclocking
Around 43% higher clock speed: 4 GHz vs 2.8 GHz
2x more L1 cache, more data can be stored in the L1 cache for quick access later
2x more L2 cache, more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later

Unlocked	Unlocked vs Locked
Maximum frequency	4 GHz vs 2.8 GHz
L1 cache	128 KB (per core) vs 64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	2 MB vs 256 KB (per core)

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Core i3-8300
CPU 2: AMD Athlon X4 970

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

2260

1700

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

6305

3811

Name	Intel Core i3-8300	AMD Athlon X4 970
PassMark - Single thread mark	2260	1700
PassMark - CPU mark	6305	3811
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	1000
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	3313
GFXBench 4.0 - Car Chase Offscreen (Frames)	1763
GFXBench 4.0 - Manhattan (Frames)	1172
GFXBench 4.0 - T-Rex (Frames)	2086
GFXBench 4.0 - Car Chase Offscreen (Fps)	1763
GFXBench 4.0 - Manhattan (Fps)	1172
GFXBench 4.0 - T-Rex (Fps)	2086

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Core i3-8300	AMD Athlon X4 970
Essentials
Architecture codename	Coffee Lake	Bristol Ridge
Launch date	February 2018	27 July 2017
Place in performance rating	1525	1500
Price now	$186.27
Processor Number	i3-8300
Series	8th Generation Intel® Core™ i3 Processors	AMD Athlon X4
Status	Launched
Value for money (0-100)	13.72
Vertical segment	Desktop	Desktop
Family		AMD Athlon Processors
OPN PIB		AD970XAUABBOX
OPN Tray		AD970XAUM44AB
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	3.70 GHz	3.8 GHz
Bus Speed	8 GT/s DMI3
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	128 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	2 MB
L3 cache	4096 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology	14 nm	28 nm
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	72 °C	74 °C
Maximum core temperature	100°C
Maximum frequency	2.8 GHz	4 GHz
Number of cores	4	4
Number of threads	4	4
Die size		246 mm
Transistor count		1178 million
Unlocked
Memory
Max memory channels	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	37.5 GB/s
Maximum memory size	64 GB
Supported memory types	DDR4-2400	DDR4
Supported memory frequency		2400 MHz
Graphics
Device ID	0x3E91
Graphics base frequency	350 MHz
Graphics max dynamic frequency	1.15 GHz
Intel® Clear Video HD technology
Intel® Clear Video technology
Intel® InTru™ 3D technology
Intel® Quick Sync Video
Max video memory	64 GB
Processor graphics	Intel® UHD Graphics 630
Graphics interfaces
Number of displays supported	3
Graphics image quality
4K resolution support
Max resolution over DisplayPort	4096x2304@60Hz
Max resolution over eDP	4096x2304@60Hz
Max resolution over HDMI 1.4	4096x2304@24Hz
Graphics API support
DirectX	12
OpenGL	4.5
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	1	1
Package Size	37.5mm x 37.5mm
Sockets supported	FCLGA1151	AM4
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	62 Watt	65 Watt
Thermal Solution	PCG 2015C (65W)
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes	16
PCI Express revision	3.0	3.0
PCIe configurations	Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8+2x4
Scalability	1S Only
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Identity Protection technology
Intel® Memory Protection Extensions (Intel® MPX)
Intel® OS Guard
Intel® Secure Key technology
Intel® Software Guard Extensions (Intel® SGX)
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Secure Boot
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
Idle States
Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2
Intel 64
Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions (AVX)
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Optane™ Memory Supported
Intel® Stable Image Platform Program (SIPP)
Intel® TSX-NI
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Intel® vPro™ Platform Eligibility
Thermal Monitoring
Fused Multiply-Add (FMA)
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)
AMD Virtualization (AMD-V™)