Intel Core M-5Y71

The Intel Core M-5Y71 is an ULV (ultra-low voltage) dual-core SoC based on the Broadwell architecture launched in late 2014. Thanks to its TDP of just 4.5 W (configurable), the CPU is suited for passively cooled tablets and 2-in-1 notebooks. In addition to two CPU cores with Hyper-Threading clocked at 1.2 - 2.9 GHz, the chip also integrates an HD Graphics 5300 GPU and a dual-channel LPDDR3/DDR3L(-RS) memory controller up to 25.6 GB/s. The chip is manufactured in a 14 nm process with FinFET transistors.

Architecture

Broadwell represents the "Tick" in Intel's Tick-Tock model, which means a shrink of its predecessor Haswell. The new 14 nm manufacturing process with three-dimensional FinFET transistors allows not only improvements in energy efficiency, but also a significantly smaller die size fit for more compact packages and devices.

Further advantages result from the revised microarchitecture of Broadwell. Due to its improved branch prediction, bigger buffer sizes (1500 instead of 1000 entries in the L2 TLB) and other tweaks, the performance per clock has been increased by more than 5 percent over its predecessor. There are also some new instruction set extensions designed for cryptographic applications.

Performance 

The Core M-5Y71 offers a very wide turbo range from 1.2 - 2.9 GHz. However, the actual frequency is largely limited by the TDP. While the CPU is similar to a Core i7-4500U (Haswell, 15 W) in short benchmarks, its performance will begin to degrade under continuous full load. Accordingly, the main purpose of Broadwell's higher power efficiency is to reduce power consumption instead of improving raw performance.

Overall, the Core M-5Y71 will be sufficient for office and multimedia purposes as well as more demanding applications.

Graphics

The integrated HD Graphics 5300 offers 24 Execution Units (EUs) clocked at 300 - 900 MHz. Similar to the CPU core, the GPU architecture (Intel Gen 8) has been thoroughly revised for improved performance-per-clock. However, the GPU frequency is also limited by the TDP, which prevents significant performance boosts over the older HD 4200 under continuous 3D load. Current games as of 2014 will be playable in low settings and XGA resolution.

Broadwell is the first Intel chip to fully support DirectX 11.2 as well as OpenCL 1.3/2.0 and OpenGL 4.3. Video will output natively via DisplayPort 1.2 or HDMI 1.4a. However, the new HDMI 2.0 standard is not supported.

Power Consumption

With a TDP of only 4.5 W, the Core M-5Y71 draws noticeably less power than the Haswell Y-series (11.5 W). However, the TDP can be set to different values such as 3.5 or 6 W, affecting clock rates and performance (6 W: 1.4 GHz base clock, 3.5 W: 0.6 GHz base clock). The CPU can be passively cooled even in thin tablets.

Series	Intel Core M
Codename	Broadwell
Series: Core M Broadwell Intel Core M-5Y71 « 1.2 - 2.9 GHz 2 / 4  4 MB L3 Intel Core M-5Y51 1.1 - 2.6 GHz 2 / 4  4 MB L3 Intel Core M-5Y70 1.1 - 2.6 GHz 2 / 4  4 MB L3 Intel Core M-5Y31 0.9 - 2.4 GHz 2 / 4  4 MB L3 Intel Core M-5Y10c 0.8 - 2 GHz 2 / 4  4 MB L3 Intel Core M-5Y10a 0.8 - 2 GHz 2 / 4  4 MB L3 Intel Core M-5Y10 0.8 - 2 GHz 2 / 4  4 MB L3
Clock Rate	1200 - 2900 MHz
Level 1 Cache	128 KB
Level 2 Cache	512 KB
Level 3 Cache	4 MB
Number of Cores / Threads	2 / 4
Power Consumption (TDP = Thermal Design Power)	4.5 Watt
Transistor Count	1300 Million
Manufacturing Technology	14 nm
Die Size	82 mm2
Max. Temperature	95 °C
Socket	FCBGA1234
Features	HD Graphics 5300 (300 - 900 MHz), Dual-Channel DDR3L(-RS)/LPDDR3 Memory Controller (max. 800 MHz, 25.6 GB/s), HyperThreading, AVX, AVX2, Quick Sync, Virtualization, AES-NI, TSX-NI, vPro
GPU	Intel HD Graphics 5300 (300 - 900 MHz)
64 Bit	64 Bit support
Architecture	x86
Announcement Date	12/01/2014
Product Link (external)	Intel Core M 5Y71

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