AMD Phenom II X2 550 vs Athlon II X2 250 |
Released November, 2009
AMD Phenom II X2 550
- 3.1 GHz
- Dual core
- Unlocked
Reasons to buy the AMD Phenom II X2 550
 | Much more l3 cache 6 MB | | Is unlocked Yes |
| | Much more l3 cache per core 3 MB/core | | Higher clock speed 3.1 GHz |
VS
Released June, 2009
AMD Athlon II X2 250
- 3 GHz
- Dual core
Reasons to buy the Athlon II X2 250
| | Much more l2 cache 2 MB | | Much lower typical power consumption 52.81W |
| | Much newer manufacturing process 32 nm | | Much better performance per watt 1.79 pt/W |
Cast your vote Do you agree or disagree with CPUBoss?
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Differences What are the advantages of each
| |||||||
| Much more l3 cache | 6 MB | vs | 0 MB | Compared to all cpus, 6 MB l3 cache is just OK | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Is unlocked | Yes | vs | No | Somewhat common; An unlocked multiplier allows for easier overclocking | |||
| Much more l3 cache per core | 3 MB/core | vs | 0 MB/core | Compared to all cpus, 3 MB/core l3 cache per core is just OK | |||
| Higher clock speed | 3.1 GHz | vs | 3 GHz | Around 5% higher clock speed | |||
| Better overclocked clock speed (Air) | 3.81 GHz | vs | 3.72 GHz | Almost the same | |||
| |||||||
| Much more l2 cache | 2 MB | vs | 1 MB | 2x more l2 cache; more data can be stored in the l2 cache for quick access later | |||
| Much lower typical power consumption | 52.81W | vs | 124.5W | 2.4x lower typical power consumption | |||
| Much newer manufacturing process | 32 nm | vs | 45 nm | A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor | |||
| Much better performance per watt | 1.79 pt/W | vs | 0.89 pt/W | More than 2x better performance per watt | |||
| Much more l2 cache per core | 1 MB/core | vs | 0.5 MB/core | 2x more l2 cache per core | |||
| Much lower annual home energy cost | 15.66 $/year | vs | 46.25 $/year | 3x lower annual home energy cost | |||
| Significantly higher Maximum operating temperature | 74 °C | vs | 70 °C | More than 5% higher Maximum operating temperature | |||
| Much lower annual commercial energy cost | 56.94 $/year | vs | 120.89 $/year | 2.1x lower annual commercial energy cost | |||
| Much better overclocked clock speed (Water) | 4.04 GHz | vs | 3.12 GHz | Around 30% better overclocked clock speed (Water) | |||
Report a correction
Benchmarks Real world tests of Phenom II X2 550 vs Athlon II X2 250
GeekBench 3 (Multi-core) Data courtesy Primate Labs
GeekBench 3 (Single core) Data courtesy Primate Labs
GeekBench 3 (AES single core) Data courtesy Primate Labs
GeekBench (32-bit) Data courtesy Primate Labs
GeekBench (64-bit) Data courtesy Primate Labs
GeekBench
PassMark Data courtesy Passmark
PassMark (Single Core)
Reviews Word on the street
Specifications Full list of technical specs
summary | Phenom II X2 550 | vs | Athlon II X2 250 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clock speed | 3.1 GHz | 3 GHz | |
| Cores | Dual core | Dual core | |
| Socket type | |||
| AM3 | |||
| Is unlocked | Yes | No | |
features | |||
| Has a NX bit | Yes | Yes | |
| Has virtualization support | Yes | Yes | |
| Instruction set extensions | |||
| SSE4a | |||
| AVX 1.1 | |||
| SSE2 | |||
| F16C | |||
| MMX | |||
| XOP | |||
| AVX | |||
| SSE3 | |||
| SSE | |||
| BMI1 | |||
| AMD64 | |||
| SSE4.1 | |||
| FMA4 | |||
| FMA3 | |||
| SSE4.2 | |||
| ABM | |||
| CVT16 | |||
| AMD-V | |||
| 3DNow! | |||
| Supplemental SSE3 | |||
| AES | |||
| TBM | |||
| Supports dynamic frequency scaling | Yes | Yes | |
integrated graphics | |||
| GPU | None | None | |
| Label | N/A | N/A | |
| Latest DirectX | N/A | N/A | |
| Number of displays supported | N/A | N/A | |
| GPU clock speed | N/A | N/A | |
| Turbo clock speed | N/A | N/A | |
| 3DMark06 | N/A | N/A | |
details | Phenom II X2 550 | vs | Athlon II X2 250 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Architecture | x86-64 | x86-64 | |
| Threads | 2 | 2 | |
| L2 cache | 1 MB | 2 MB | |
| L2 cache per core | 0.5 MB/core | 1 MB/core | |
| L3 cache | 6 MB | 0 MB | |
| L3 cache per core | 3 MB/core | 0 MB/core | |
| Manufacture process | 45 nm | 32 nm | |
| Max CPUs | 1 | 1 | |
| Voltage range | 0.85 - 1.43V | 0.85 - 1.43V | |
| Operating temperature | Unknown - 70°C | Unknown - 74°C | |
overclocking | |||
| Overclock popularity | 7 | 25 | |
| Overclocked clock speed | 3.81 GHz | 3.72 GHz | |
| Overclocked clock speed (Water) | 3.12 GHz | 4.04 GHz | |
| PassMark (Overclocked) | 1,881.5 | 2,374.3 | |
| Overclocked clock speed (Air) | 3.81 GHz | 3.72 GHz | |
power consumption | |||
| TDP | 80W | 65W | |
| Annual home energy cost | 46.25 $/year | 15.66 $/year | |
| Annual commercial energy cost | 120.89 $/year | 56.94 $/year | |
| Performance per watt | 0.89 pt/W | 1.79 pt/W | |
| Typical power consumption | 124.5W | 52.81W | |
bus | |||
| Clock speed | 2,000 MHz | 2,000 MHz | |
 AMD Phenom II X2 550  Report a correction |  AMD Athlon II X2 250 Report a correction |
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