Intel Core i5-2540M vs Intel Core 2 Duo T6670

Intel Core i5-2540M

The Intel Core i5-2540M is a fast high end dual core processor at the time of introduction in Q1 2011. It is based on the Sandy Bridge architecture and offers Hyperthreading to handle 4 threads at once (for a better usage of the pipeline). Compared to the faster Core i7, the i5 offers a smaller last level cache of 3MB. The base clock speed is 2.6 GHz but due to Turbo Boost it can reach 3.1 GHz (2 cores active) and 3.3 GHz (1 core active).

Sandy Bridge is the evolutionary successor of the Arrandale architecture. The most noteable improvements are the new 256Bit AVX instructions, the improved Turbo 2.0 and the integration of the graphics card into the 32nm CPU core. 

Der i5-2540M offers an integrated graphics card ( Intel HD Graphics 3000) which is clearly faster then the older Intel HD Graphics in the Arrandale CPUs. As the new GPU is included in the CPU, it is also manufactured in 32nm and shares the fast level 3 cache with the CPU cores (using a new ring bus). In the 2540M it is clocked from  650-1300MHz (Turbo Boost).

Furthermore, an improved dual-channel DDR3 memory controller is included on the CPU die that is used by the CPU and GPU part.

Due to the improved architecture and the new Turbo Boost 2.0, the average performance of the Core i5-2540M is higher than a similar clocked Arrandale Core i5. In synthetic benchmarks the performance should be on a level to the old Core i7-620M and therefore suited for even demanding tasks.

The 35W TDP rating includes the integrated GPU and memory controller.

Intel Core 2 Duo T6670

The Intel Core 2 Duo T6670 is an entry level laptop processor based on the Penryn core. It offers only 2 MB level 2 cache and a mediocre clock rate of 2.2 GHz. Compared to the similar T6600, the T6670 offers Virtualization VT-x and a higher maximum temperature of 105°C.