Intel started 2011 off with the official introduction to their highly anticipated Sandy Bridge processors. We had the chance to take a look at their mid-range i5-2500k and we loved it. The i5-2500k isn’t perfect for everyone, that’s why Intel has introduced a range of processors. Today we will be taking a look at their i3-2100 and i7-2600 to see how they stand in the grand scheme of things. While we do, we will retest the i5-2500k and put the three head to head to find out what the extra money gets you.
Product Name: Intel i3-2100
Review Sample Provided by: Intel
Review by: Wes
Pictures by: Wes
Specifications
Product Name |
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Price |
$124.99 |
$219.99 |
$299.99 |
# of Cores |
2 |
4 |
4 |
# of Threads |
4 |
4 |
8 |
Clock Speed |
3.1 GHz |
3.3 GHz |
3.4 GHz |
Max Turbo Frequency |
n/a |
3.7 GHz |
3.8 GHz |
Cache |
3 MB |
6 MB |
8 MB |
Bus/Core Ratio |
31 |
33 |
34 |
System Bus |
5 GT/s |
5 GT/s |
5 GT/s |
Instruction Set |
64-bit |
64-bit |
64-bit |
Lithography |
32 nm |
32 nm |
32 nm |
Max TDP |
65 W |
95 W |
95 W |
Memory Specifications |
|||
Max Memory Size |
32 GB |
32 GB |
32 GB |
Memory Types |
DDR3-1066/1333 |
DDR3-1066/1333 |
DDR3-1066/1333 |
# of Memory Channels |
2 |
2 |
2 |
Max Memory Bandwidth |
21 GB/s |
21 GB/s |
21 GB/s |
Graphics Specifications |
|||
Processor Graphics |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Graphics Model |
Intel® HD Graphics 2000 |
Intel® HD Graphics 3000 |
Intel® HD Graphics 2000 |
Intel® Quick Sync Video |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Intel® InTru™ 3D Technology, |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Intel® Insider™ |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Intel® Wireless Display |
No |
No |
No |
Intel® Flexible Display Interface (Intel® FDI) |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Intel® Clear Video HD Technology |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Dual Display Capable |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Expansion Options |
|||
PCI Express Revision |
2.0 |
2.0 |
2.0 |
Advanced Technologies |
|||
Intel® Turbo Boost Technology |
No |
2.0 |
2.0 |
Intel® vPro Technology |
No |
No |
Yes |
Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x) |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d) |
No |
No |
Yes |
Intel® Trusted Execution Technology |
No |
No |
Yes |
AES New Instructions |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Intel® 64 |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Idle States |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Thermal Monitoring Technologies |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Intel® Fast Memory Access |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Intel® Flex Memory Access |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Execute Disable Bit |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |