AMD Athlon II X2 240e vs Intel Core i5-12600K

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CPU comparison with benchmarks

-VS-

CPU lineage

AMD Athlon II X2 240e or AMD Athlon II X2 240e – which processor offers superior performance? In this comparison, we examine disparities and assess which of these two CPUs outperforms the other. We delve into technical specifications and benchmark outcomes.
The AMD Athlon II X2 240e features 2 processor cores and has the capability to manage 2 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q3/2009 and belongs to the 1 generation of the AMD Athlon II series.
To use the AMD Athlon II X2 240e, you'll need a motherboard with a AM3 socket.
The Intel Core i5-12600K features 10 processor cores and has the capability to manage 16 threads concurrently.
It was released in Q4/2021 and belongs to the 12 generation of the Intel Core i5 series.
To use the Intel Core i5-12600K, you'll need a motherboard with a LGA 1700 socket.
Desktop / Server Segment Desktop / Server
AMD Athlon II X2 240e Name Intel Core i5-12600K
AMD Athlon II Family Intel Core i5
1 Generation 12
AMD Athlon II X2 (Propus) Group Intel Core i 12000
 
 

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The AMD Athlon II X2 240e has 2 CPU cores and can calculate 2 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the AMD Athlon II X2 240e is 2.8 GHz
The Intel Core i5-12600K has 10 CPU cores and can calculate 16 threads in parallel.
The clock frequency of the A-Core is 3.7 GHz.
The number of CPU cores greatly affects the speed of the processor and is an important performance indicator.
Processors with hybrid (big.LITTLE) architecture strike a balance between performance and power efficiency, making them ideal for mobile devices.
None None 4.9 GHz
None None 3.6 GHz
2 Threads 16
No Hyperthreading Yes
2x Cores None
None None 2.8 GHz
None None 3.7 GHz
None None 4x Gracemont
None None 6x Golden Cove
No Overclocking Yes
normal Core architecture hybrid (big.LITTLE)
2.8 GHz Frequency None
2 CPU Cores 10
 
 

Internal Graphics

The AMD Athlon II X2 240e does not have integrated graphics.
The Intel Core i5-12600K has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short.
Specifically, the Intel Core i5-12600K uses the Intel UHD Graphics 770, which has 256 texture shaders
and 32 execution units.
The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.
-- GPU frequency 0.3 GHz
-- Release date Q4/2021
-- Direct X 12
GPU name Intel UHD Graphics 770
-- Technology 10 nm
-- Max. displays --
-- Shaders 256
0 bytes Max. GPU Memory 64.0 GB
-- Execution units 32
-- Generation 11
-- GPU (Turbo) 1.45 GHz
 
 

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

-- AI specifications --
-- AI hardware --
 
 

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.
-- AVC Decode / Encode
-- VC-1 Decode
-- VP9 Decode / Encode
-- h265 / HEVC (10 bit) Decode / Encode
-- h264 Decode / Encode
-- VP8 Decode / Encode
-- h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
-- JPEG Decode / Encode
-- AV1 Decode
 
 

Memory & PCIe

The processor supports a maximum memory capacity of 128.0 GB distributed across 2 memory channels. It offers a peak memory bandwidth of 76.8 GB/s. Both the type and quantity of memory can have a substantial impact on the overall system performance.
2 Memory channels 2
16.0 GB Max. Memory 128.0 GB
pci PCIe pci
No AES-NI Yes
No ECC Yes
-- Bandwidth 76.8 GB/s
DDR3-1333 Memory type DDR4-3200, DDR5-4800
 
 

Thermal Management

The processor has a thermal design power (TDP) of 45 W watts.
TDP indicates the cooling solution needed to effectively manage the processor's heat. It generally provides an approximate indication of the actual power consumption of the CPU itself.
The processor has a thermal design power (TDP) of 125 W watts.
-- Tjunction max 100 °C
None TDP (PL2) 150 W
45 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 125 W
 
 

Technical details

The AMD Athlon II X2 240e is manufactured using a 45 nm process.
A smaller manufacturing process indicates a more contemporary and energy-efficient CPU.
A substantial cache can significantly enhance the processor's performance, particularly in scenarios like gaming.
The Intel Core i5-12600K is manufactured using a 10 nm process.
In total, this processor boasts a generous 20.0 MB cache.
Q3/2009 Release date Q4/2021
-- Part Number BX8071512600K
2.0 MB L2-Cache 9.5 MB
AMD-V Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d
SSE3, SSE4a, MMX, 3DNow! ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2, AVX2+
-- Chip design Monolithic
Propus Architecture Alder Lake S
45 nm Technology 10 nm
AM3 Socket LGA 1700
Windows 10, Linux Operating systems Windows 10, Linux, Windows 11
-- Release price 289 $
Technical data sheet Documents Technical data sheet
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
0 bytes L3-Cache 20.0 MB
 
 

Benchmarks

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Intel Core i5-12600K
10C 16T @ 3.7 GHz
11912
11912
AMD Athlon II X2 240e
2C 2T @ 2.8 GHz
715
715

AMD Athlon II X2 240e and Intel Core i5-12600K in leaderboards