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Intel Core i7-2960XM vs Intel Core i7-2640M vs Intel Core i7-2720QM

Intel Core i7-2960XM

► remove from comparison Intel 2960XM

The Intel Core i7-2960XM is the fastest quad-core processor for laptops in Q3-2011 and successor to the Core i7-2920XM. Due to the Extreme Edition branding, the CPU should be easy to overclock (unlocked multiplicator). It is based on the Sandy Bridge architecture and offers Hyperthreading to handle 8 threads at once (for a better usage of the pipeline). Compared to the previous Clarksdale quad-cores, the i7-2960XM is now manufactured in 32nm, offers an integrated graphics card and AES functions. Compared to the slower clocked 2860QM, the 2960XM is specified with a higher TDP.

Sandy Bridge is the evolutionary successor of the Arrandale architecture. The most noteable improvements are the new 265Bit AVX instructions, the improved Turbo Boost and the integration of the graphics card into the 32nm CPU core. Furthermore, the integrated memory controller was improved and supports up to 8 GB DDR3-1333.

The Core i7-2960XM offers an integrated graphics card (Intel HD Graphics 3000) which proved to be clearly faster than the old Intel HD Graphics in the Arrandale CPUs and on a level with entry level dedicated graphics cards like the GeForce 310M. The HD Graphics 3000 also supports Turbo Boost and clocks between 650 MHz and 1300 MHz in the i7-2920XM (therefore it should be similar or faster in the 2960XM). As the graphics card shares the fast last level cache, the processor is a bit slower with activated GPU.

Due to the high Turbo Boost, large L3 Cache, and Hyperthreading, the performance of the Core i7-2960XM is only slightly lower than the desktop Core i7-2600K. In 2011 it is the fastest mobile processors for laptops. Therefore, the performance should be sufficient for even the most demanding tasks like HD video editing or demanding 3D games.

The high TDP rating of the 2960XM enables the usage of the quad core only in large and heavy laptops (usually 15" and up). Compared to the previous generation (Clarkdale, e.g. Core i7-940XM) of quad-cores, however, the TDP improved, as the integrated GPU is now included.

Intel Core i7-2640M

► remove from comparison Intel 2640M

The Intel Core i7-2640M is the fastest dual core processor at the time of introduction in Q3 2011 and successor of the slower clocked i7-2620M. 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 slower Core i5, the i7 offers a larger last level cache of 4MB. The base clock speed is 2.8 GHz but due to Turbo Boost it can reach 3.3 GHz (2 cores active) and 3.5 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 i7-2640M 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 2620M it is clocked from 650-1300MHz (Turbo Boost), and in the 2640M it should be similar.

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 i7-2640M is higher than a similar clocked Arrandale Core i7 dual core. The performance should even excel the old high-end quad core models like the Core i7-820QM.

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

Intel Core i7-2720QM

► remove from comparison Intel 2720QM

The Intel Core i7-2720QM is a fast high-end quad core processor for laptops. It is based on the Sandy Bridge architecture and offers Hyperthreading to handle 8 threads at once (for a better usage of the pipeline). Compared to the previous Clarksdale quad-cores, the i7-2720QM is now manufactured in 32nm and offers an integrated graphics card and AES functions. Compared to the faster clocked 2820QM, the 2720QM offers less level 3 cache (6 vs. 8MB).

Sandy Bridge is the evolutionary successor of the Arrandale architecture. The most noteable improvements are the new 256Bit AVX instructions, the improved Turbo Boost and the integration of the graphics card into the 32nm CPU core. Furthermore, the integrated memory controller was improved and supports up to 8 GB DDR3-1333.

The i7-2720QM offers an integrated graphics card (Intel HD Graphics 3000) which proved to be clearly faster than the old Intel HD Graphics in the Arrandale CPUs and on a level with entry level dedicated graphics cards like the GeForce 310M. The HD Graphics 3000 also supports Turbo Boost and clocks between 650 MHz and 1300 MHz. As the graphics card shares the fast last level cache, the processor is a bit slower with activated GPU.

The performance of the Core i7-2720QM is noticeable better than the old i7-720QM and even a bit faster than the fastest Clarksfield CPU the Core i7-940XM quad core. Therefore, the performance should be sufficient for modern 3D games and demanding applications. Thanks to the fast Turbo Boost 2.0 even single threaded applications run very fast. The detailed benchmark results of the 2720QM can be found in the lower section of this page, or in our detailed review of the new Sandy Bridge quad core processors.

The relative high TDP rating of the 2720QM of 45 Watt enables the usage of the quad core only in 15" laptops and up. However, compared to the previous generation of quad-cores, the TDP improved, as the integrated GPU is now included.

ModelIntel Core i7-2960XMIntel Core i7-2640MIntel Core i7-2720QM
SeriesIntel Core i7Intel Core i7Intel Core i7
CodenameSandy BridgeSandy BridgeSandy Bridge
Series: Core i7 Sandy Bridge
Intel Core i7-2960XM « 2.7 - 3.7 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2860QM2.5 - 3.6 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2920XM2.5 - 3.5 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2760QM2.4 - 3.5 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2820QM2.3 - 3.4 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2720QM2.2 - 3.3 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2675QM2.2 - 3.1 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2670QM2.2 - 3.1 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2635QM2 - 2.9 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2630QM2 - 2.9 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2640M2.8 - 3.5 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2620M2.7 - 3.4 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2649M2.3 - 3.2 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2629M2.1 - 3 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2677M1.8 - 2.9 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2637M1.7 - 2.8 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2657M1.6 - 2.7 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2617M1.5 - 2.6 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2960XM2.7 - 3.7 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2860QM2.5 - 3.6 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2920XM2.5 - 3.5 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2760QM2.4 - 3.5 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2820QM2.3 - 3.4 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2720QM2.2 - 3.3 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2675QM2.2 - 3.1 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2670QM2.2 - 3.1 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2635QM2 - 2.9 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2630QM2 - 2.9 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2640M « 2.8 - 3.5 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2620M2.7 - 3.4 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2649M2.3 - 3.2 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2629M2.1 - 3 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2677M1.8 - 2.9 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2637M1.7 - 2.8 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2657M1.6 - 2.7 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2617M1.5 - 2.6 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2960XM2.7 - 3.7 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2860QM2.5 - 3.6 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2920XM2.5 - 3.5 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2760QM2.4 - 3.5 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2820QM2.3 - 3.4 GHz4 / 8 cores8 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2720QM « 2.2 - 3.3 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2675QM2.2 - 3.1 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2670QM2.2 - 3.1 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2635QM2 - 2.9 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2630QM2 - 2.9 GHz4 / 8 cores6 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2640M2.8 - 3.5 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2620M2.7 - 3.4 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2649M2.3 - 3.2 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2629M2.1 - 3 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2677M1.8 - 2.9 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2637M1.7 - 2.8 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2657M1.6 - 2.7 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Intel Core i7-2617M1.5 - 2.6 GHz2 / 4 cores4 MB L3
Clock2700 - 3700 MHz2800 - 3500 MHz2200 - 3300 MHz
L1 Cache256 KB128 KB256 KB
L2 Cache1 MB512 KB1 MB
L3 Cache8 MB4 MB6 MB
Cores / Threads4 / 82 / 44 / 8
TDP55 Watt35 Watt45 Watt
Transistors995 Million624 Million995 Million
Technology32 nm32 nm32 nm
Die Size216 mm2149 mm2216 mm2
max. Temp.100 °C100 °C100 °C
SocketFCPGA988FCBGA1224, FCPGA988
FeaturesHD Graphics 3000, DDR-1333 Memory Controller, HyperThreading, AVX, Quick Sync, VirtualizationHD Graphics 3000, DDR3-1066/1333 Memory Controller (max 8GB), HyperThreading, AVX, Quick Sync, VirtualizationHD Graphics 3000 (650-1300MHz), DDR-1600 Memory Controller, HyperThreading, AVX, Quick Sync, Virtualization
iGPUIntel HD Graphics 3000 (650 - 1300 MHz)Intel HD Graphics 3000 (650 - 1300 MHz)Intel HD Graphics 3000 (650 - 1300 MHz)
Architecturex86x86x86
$1096 U.S.$346 U.S.$378 U.S.
Announced
Manufacturerark.intel.comark.intel.com

Benchmarks

Cinebench R11.5 - Cinebench R11.5 CPU Multi 64 Bit
6.3 Points (8%)
min: 3.07     avg: 3.1     median: 3.2 (4%)     max: 3.2 Points
min: 5.12     avg: 5.3     median: 5.3 (7%)     max: 5.64 Points
Cinebench R11.5 - Cinebench R11.5 CPU Single 64 Bit
100%
1 2640M +
1.4 Points (34%)
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Single (32bit)
4928 Points (30%)
min: 4009     avg: 4383     median: 4443 (27%)     max: 4506 Points
min: 4114     avg: 4168     median: 4167 (25%)     max: 4219 Points
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Multi (32bit)
18300 Points (13%)
min: 9691     avg: 9766     median: 9778 (7%)     max: 9833 Points
min: 13961     avg: 14649     median: 14852 (11%)     max: 15301 Points
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Multi (64bit)
22311 Points (15%)
min: 11067     avg: 11767     median: 11874 (8%)     max: 12037 Points
min: 15819     avg: 17946     median: 18193 (13%)     max: 19061 Points
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Rend. Single (64bit)
6184 Points (8%)
min: 5445     avg: 5549     median: 5534 (7%)     max: 5665 Points
min: 4204     avg: 5084     median: 5236 (6%)     max: 5299 Points
wPrime 2.10 - wPrime 2.0 1024m *
100%
1 2640M +
min: 478.5     avg: 493.6     median: 489 (6%)     max: 524 s
101%
1 2720QM +
min: 410.2     avg: 423.1     median: 423.5 (5%)     max: 435.6 s
wPrime 2.10 - wPrime 2.0 32m *
100%
1 2640M +
min: 15     avg: 15.5     median: 15.1 (3%)     max: 16.61 s
100%
1 2720QM +
min: 12.13     avg: 13     median: 13.1 (3%)     max: 13.73 s
WinRAR - WinRAR 4.0
100%
1 2640M +
min: 2555     avg: 2632     median: 2620 (4%)     max: 2733 Points
X264 HD Benchmark 4.0 - x264 Pass 2
100%
1 2640M +
min: 16.38     avg: 16.9     median: 17 (6%)     max: 17.21 fps
X264 HD Benchmark 4.0 - x264 Pass 1
100%
1 2640M +
min: 88.7     avg: 91     median: 89.3 (21%)     max: 95 fps
TrueCrypt - TrueCrypt Serpent
100%
1 2640M +
min: 0.124     avg: 0.1     median: 0.1 (0%)     max: 0.152 GB/s
TrueCrypt - TrueCrypt Twofish
100%
1 2640M +
min: 0.198     avg: 0.2     median: 0.3 (5%)     max: 0.27 GB/s
TrueCrypt - TrueCrypt AES
100%
1 2640M +
1.6 GB/s (4%)
3DMark 06 - CPU - 3DMark 06 - CPU
6820 Points (15%)
min: 3882     avg: 3934     median: 3927 (8%)     max: 3978 Points
min: 5133     avg: 5529     median: 5616 (12%)     max: 5772 Points
Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 1M - Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 1M *
10 s (2%)
min: 11     avg: 11.2     median: 11 (2%)     max: 11.66 s
min: 11     avg: 11.4     median: 11 (2%)     max: 12.3 s
Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 2M - Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 2M *
22 s (1%)
min: 25     avg: 26     median: 26 (1%)     max: 27.04 s
min: 26     avg: 27     median: 27 (1%)     max: 28.2 s
Super Pi Mod 1.5 XS 32M - Super Pi mod 1.5 XS 32M *
568 s (3%)
min: 604     avg: 626     median: 634 (3%)     max: 639 s
min: 635     avg: 650     median: 647 (3%)     max: 671 s
SiSoft Sandra Dhrystone (MIPS) - SiSoft Sandra Dhrystone (MIPS)
120900 MIPS (57%)
min: 64300     avg: 64523     median: 64545 (31%)     max: 64700 MIPS
109640 MIPS (52%)
SiSoft Sandra Whetstone (MFLOPS) - SiSoft Sandra Whetstone (MFLOPS)
80500 MFLOPS (62%)
min: 39000     avg: 39255     median: 39135 (30%)     max: 39750 MFLOPS
66400 MFLOPS (51%)
Windows 7 Experience Index - Win7 CPU
7.6 Points (97%)
min: 7     avg: 7.2     median: 7.1 (91%)     max: 7.6 Points
7.5 Points (96%)
3DMark Vantage - 3DM Vant. Perf. CPU no Physx
23249 Points (20%)
min: 10127     avg: 10509     median: 10559 (9%)     max: 10838 Points
min: 11457     avg: 17984     median: 18725 (16%)     max: 19716 Points
3DMark 11 - 3DM11 Performance Physics
8098 Points (22%)
min: 3902     avg: 4140     median: 4172 (11%)     max: 4320 Points
min: 5473     avg: 6495     median: 6627 (18%)     max: 7334 Points
3DMark - 3DMark Ice Storm Physics
100%
1 2640M +
26569 Points (22%)
136%
1 2720QM +
36234 Points (29%)
3DMark - 3DMark Cloud Gate Physics
100%
1 2640M +
2876 Points (7%)
191%
1 2720QM +
5494 Points (14%)
3DMark - 3DMark Fire Strike Standard Physics
100%
1 2720QM +
7558 Points (13%)
Geekbench 2 - 32 Bit - Geekbench Stream
100%
1 2640M +
7873 Points (64%)
Geekbench 2 - 32 Bit - Geekbench Memory
100%
1 2640M +
6847 Points (62%)
Geekbench 2 - 32 Bit - Geekbench Floating Point
100%
1 2640M +
7293 Points (14%)
Geekbench 2 - 32 Bit - Geekbench Integer
100%
1 2640M +
6298 Points (13%)
Geekbench 2 - 32 Bit - Geekbench Total Score
100%
1 2640M +
6913 Points (18%)

Average Benchmarks Intel Core i7-2960XM → 100% n=14

Average Benchmarks Intel Core i7-2640M → 70% n=14

Average Benchmarks Intel Core i7-2720QM → 88% n=14

- Range of benchmark values for this graphics card
- Average benchmark values for this graphics card
* Smaller numbers mean a higher performance
1 This benchmark is not used for the average calculation

v1.26
log 29. 06:24:22

#0 checking url part for id 2846 +0s ... 0s

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#4 did not recreate cache, as it is less than 5 days old! Created at Thu, 28 Mar 2024 05:35:32 +0100 +0.001s ... 0.001s

#5 composed specs +0.037s ... 0.038s

#6 did output specs +0s ... 0.038s

#7 getting avg benchmarks for device 2846 +0.002s ... 0.04s

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#9 getting avg benchmarks for device 2839 +0.003s ... 0.053s

#10 got single benchmarks 2839 +0.03s ... 0.083s

#11 getting avg benchmarks for device 1499 +0.002s ... 0.085s

#12 got single benchmarks 1499 +0.038s ... 0.123s

#13 got avg benchmarks for devices +0s ... 0.123s

#14 min, max, avg, median took s +0.184s ... 0.308s

#15 return log +0s ... 0.308s

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Redaktion, 2017-09- 8 (Update: 2023-07- 1)