Intel Core i7-860S vs Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300

Comparative analysis of Intel Core i7-860S and Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Compatibility, Peripherals, 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), Geekbench 4 - Single Core, Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core.

Intel Core i7-860S

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Core i7-860S

CPU is newer: launch date 1 year(s) 10 month(s) later
Around 38% higher clock speed: 3.46 GHz vs 2.5 GHz
Around 16% lower typical power consumption: 82 Watt vs 95 Watt
Around 8% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1173 vs 1082
Around 16% better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 2324 vs 1996
Around 92% better performance in CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s): 0.907 vs 0.473
Around 89% better performance in CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s): 46.184 vs 24.465

Specifications (specs)
Launch date	January 2010 vs March 2008
Maximum frequency	3.46 GHz vs 2.5 GHz
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	82 Watt vs 95 Watt
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1173 vs 1082
PassMark - CPU mark	2324 vs 1996
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)	0.907 vs 0.473
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)	46.184 vs 24.465

Reasons to consider the Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300

6x more L2 cache, more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later

L2 cache	6144 KB vs 256 KB (per core)

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Core i7-860S
CPU 2: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

1173

1082

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

2324

1996

CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)

CPU 1

CPU 2

0.907

0.473

CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)

CPU 1

CPU 2

46.184

24.465

Name	Intel Core i7-860S	Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300
PassMark - Single thread mark	1173	1082
PassMark - CPU mark	2324	1996
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)	0.907	0.473
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)	46.184	24.465
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)	0.278
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)	1.222
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)	2.716
Geekbench 4 - Single Core		348
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core		1074

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Core i7-860S	Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300
Essentials
Architecture codename	Lynnfield	Yorkfield
Launch date	January 2010	March 2008
Launch price (MSRP)	$422
Place in performance rating	2874	2879
Price now	$198.99	$49.99
Processor Number	i7-860S	Q9300
Series	Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors	Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors
Status	Discontinued	Discontinued
Value for money (0-100)	6.97	18.63
Vertical segment	Desktop	Desktop
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	2.53 GHz	2.50 GHz
Bus Speed	2.5 GT/s DMI	1333 MHz FSB
Die size	296 mm2	164 mm2
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	256 KB
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	6144 KB
L3 cache	8192 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology	45 nm	45 nm
Maximum frequency	3.46 GHz	2.5 GHz
Number of cores	4	4
Number of threads	8
Transistor count	774 million	456 million
VID voltage range	0.6500V-1.4000V	0.8500V-1.3625V
Maximum case temperature (TCase)		71 °C
Maximum core temperature		71.4°C
Memory
Max memory channels	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	21 GB/s
Maximum memory size	16 GB
Supported memory types	DDR3 1066/1333	DDR1, DDR2, DDR3
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	1	1
Package Size	37.5mm x 37.5mm	37.5mm x 37.5mm
Sockets supported	LGA1156	LGA775
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	82 Watt	95 Watt
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes	16
PCI Express revision	2.0
PCIe configurations	1x16, 2x8
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
Intel® vPro™ Platform Eligibility
Physical Address Extensions (PAE)	36-bit
Thermal Monitoring
FSB parity
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)