CPUBoss Review Our evaluation of 3240 vs 2120 among desktop CPUs (45 to 75W)

Performance

Benchmark performance using all cores
Core i3 3240
8.5
Core i3 2120
7.8
Core i3 3220
8.3
PCMark 8 Home 3.0 Accelerated, PassMark and 1 more

Single-core Performance

Individual core benchmark performance
Core i3 3240
6.9
Core i3 2120
6.5
Core i3 3220
6.9
PassMark (Single Core), Geekbench 3 Single Core and 1 more

Integrated Graphics

Integrated GPU performance for graphics
Core i3 3240
n.d.
Core i3 2120
n.d.
Core i3 3220
n.d.
Fire Strike

Integrated Graphics (OpenCL)

Integrated GPU performance for parallel computing
Core i3 3240
4.1
Core i3 2120
4.1
Core i3 3220
0.0
CompuBench 1.5 Bitcoin mining and 4 more

Performance per Watt

How efficiently does the processor use electricity?
Core i3 3240
6.9
Core i3 2120
5.8
Core i3 3220
5.7
Fire Strike, CompuBench 1.5 Bitcoin mining and 11 more

Value

Are you paying a premium for performance?
Core i3 3240
n.d.
Core i3 2120
n.d.
Core i3 3220
n.d.
Fire Strike, CompuBench 1.5 Bitcoin mining and 11 more
6.6

CPUBoss Score

Combination of all six facets
Core i3 3240
6.6
Core i3 2120
6.0
Core i3 3220
5.3

Winner
Intel Core i3 3240 

CPUBoss recommends the Intel Core i3 3240  based on its .

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Intel Core i3 3240

Front view of Intel Core i3 3240
Front view of Intel Core i3 2120

Intel Core i3 2120

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Differences What are the advantages of each

Front view of Intel Core i3 3240

Reasons to consider the
Intel Core i3 3240

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Much more l2 cache 1 MB vs 0.5 MB 2x more l2 cache; more data can be stored in the l2 cache for quick access later
Much newer manufacturing process 22 nm vs 32 nm A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor
Much more l2 cache per core 0.5 MB/core vs 0.25 MB/core 2x more l2 cache per core
More number of displays supported 3 vs 2 1 more number of displays supported
Higher clock speed 3.4 GHz vs 3.3 GHz Around 5% higher clock speed
Lower typical power consumption 44.69W vs 52.81W More than 15% lower typical power consumption
Better overclocked clock speed (Air) 3.5 GHz vs 3.42 GHz Almost the same
Newer Sep, 2012 vs Jan, 2011 Release date over 1 years later
Lower annual home energy cost 13.25 $/year vs 15.66 $/year More than 15% lower annual home energy cost
Lower annual commercial energy cost 48.18 $/year vs 56.94 $/year More than 15% lower annual commercial energy cost
Better overclocked clock speed (Water) 3.5 GHz vs 3.37 GHz Around 5% better overclocked clock speed (Water)
Front view of Intel Core i3 2120

Reasons to consider the
Intel Core i3 2120

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Much better turbo clock speed 1,100 MHz vs 1,050 MHz Around 5% better turbo clock speed
Significantly higher Maximum operating temperature 69.1 °C vs 65.3 °C More than 5% higher Maximum operating temperature

Benchmarks Real world tests of Core i3 3240 vs 2120

CompuBench 1.5 (Face detection)

Core i3 3240
4.27 mPixels/s
Core i3 2120
2 mPixels/s

PCMark 8 Home 3.0 Accelerated Data courtesy FutureMark

Core i3 3240
2,269
Core i3 2120
2,136

GeekBench 3 (Multi-core) Data courtesy Primate Labs

Core i3 3240
5,507
Core i3 2120
5,074

GeekBench 3 (Single core) Data courtesy Primate Labs

Core i3 3240
2,516
Core i3 2120
2,371

GeekBench 3 (AES single core) Data courtesy Primate Labs

Core i3 3240
177,600 MB/s
Core i3 2120
162,800 MB/s

GeekBench (32-bit) Data courtesy Primate Labs

Core i3 3240
5,519
Core i3 2120
5,008

PassMark Data courtesy Passmark

Core i3 3240
4,309
Core i3 2120
3,901

PassMark (Single Core)

Core i3 3240
1,760
Core i3 2120
1,690

Specifications Full list of technical specs

summary

 Core i3 3240  vs
2120 
Clock speed 3.4 GHz 3.3 GHz
Cores Dual core Dual core
Socket type
LGA 1155
Is unlocked No No

features
Has a NX bit Yes Yes
Supports trusted computing No No
Has virtualization support Yes Yes
Instruction set extensions
SSE2
MMX
SSE4
AVX
SSE3
SSE
SSE4.1
SSE4.2
Supplemental SSE3
AES
Supports dynamic frequency scaling Yes Yes

power consumption
TDP 55W 65W
Annual home energy cost 13.25 $/year 15.66 $/year
Annual commercial energy cost 48.18 $/year 56.94 $/year
Performance per watt 2.67 pt/W 2.79 pt/W
Typical power consumption 44.69W 52.81W

bus
Architecture DMI DMI
Number of links 1 1
Transfer rate 5,000 MT/s 5,000 MT/s

details

 Core i3 3240  vs
2120 
Architecture x86-64 x86-64
Threads 4 4
L2 cache 1 MB 0.5 MB
L2 cache per core 0.5 MB/core 0.25 MB/core
L3 cache 3 MB 3 MB
L3 cache per core 1.5 MB/core 1.5 MB/core
Manufacture process 22 nm 32 nm
Max CPUs 1 1
Clock multiplier 34 33
Operating temperature Unknown - 65.3°C Unknown - 69.1°C

overclocking
Overclock popularity 1 22
Overclocked clock speed 3.5 GHz 3.42 GHz
Overclocked clock speed (Water) 3.5 GHz 3.37 GHz
PassMark (Overclocked) 3,313.1 1,336.7
Overclocked clock speed (Air) 3.5 GHz 3.42 GHz

integrated graphics
GPU GPU GPU
Label Intel® HD Graphics 2500 Intel® HD Graphics 2000
Number of displays supported 3 2
GPU clock speed 650 MHz 850 MHz
Turbo clock speed 1,050 MHz 1,100 MHz

memory controller
Memory controller Built-in Built-in
Memory type
DDR3-1600
DDR3-1333
DDR3-1066
DDR3
Channels Dual Channel Dual Channel
Maximum bandwidth 25,600 MB/s 21,333.32 MB/s
Maximum memory size 32,768 MB 32,768 MB
Intel Core i3 3240
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Intel Core i3 2120
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