Intel Core m3-8100Y vs Intel Pentium Silver N6000 vs Intel Celeron N5095

Intel Core m3-8100Y

The Intel Core m3-8100Y is a very efficient dual-core SoC for tablets and passively cooled notebooks based on the Amber Lake generation and will be announced around August 2018. The CPU consists of two processor cores clocked at 1.1 - 3.4 GHz. Thanks to Hyper Threading, the processor can execute up to four threads simultaneously. The chips also includes the Intel HD Graphics 615 GPU, a dual-channel memory controller (DDR3L/LPDDR3) as well as VP9 and H.265 video de- and encoder.  Compared to the Kaby Lake-Y predecessors (e.g. Core m3-7Y32), Amber Lake uses the same architecture produced in the improved 14nm+ FinFET process (no 14nm++) but offers higher clock speeds at an increased TDP rating.

Architecture

Intel basically used the familiar micro architecture from the Skylake / Kaby Lake generation, so the per-MHz performance is identical.

Performance

The performance of the Y series is highly depending on the cooling solution of the laptop / tablet and the TDP settings for sustained load. Therefore, the differences between a Core m3 and a i7 may be rather slim, if the thermals are very limited. The high Turbo clock speeds in Amber Lake should however lead to a very good single thread performance for short bursts.

Graphics

The integrated Intel HD Graphics 615 GPU has 24 Execution Units (EUs) like the old HD Graphics 515 and runs with clocks between 300 and 950 MHz in combination with this processor. The performance heavily depends on the TDP limit as well as the memory configuration; with fast LPDDR3-1866 RAM in dual-channel mode, the GPU should sometimes be able to compete with the HD Graphics 520, but can also be much slower in other scenarios. Modern games from 2016 will, if at all, only run smoothly in the lowest settings.

Contrary to Skylake, Kaby Lake and Amber Lake now also supports hardware decoding for H.265/HEVC Main10 with a 10-bit color depth as well as Google's VP9 codec.

Power Consumption

The chip is manufactured in the old 14 nm+ process with FinFET transistors. The typical TDP for the Amber Lake Y-series is specified at 5 Watts (previous generations were 4.5 Watt), and can be adjusted in both directions depending on the usage scenario.

Intel Pentium Silver N6000

The Intel Pentium Silver N6000 is a quad-core SoC of the Jasper Lake series that is primarily intended for inexpensive notebooks and was announced in early 2021. The four Tremont CPU cores clock between 1.1 and 3.3 GHz (single core Burst) and offer no HyperThreading (SMT). The N6000 uses 1.5 MB L2 and 4 MB L3 cache. The chip is manufactured on the first-gen 10 nm Intel process, the same process as Ice Lake.

Architecture

The processor architecture is called Tremont and a complete redesign compared to the old Golmont Plus cores in the predecessor. According to Intel, the single thread performance of a core could be improved by 30% on average (10 - 80% in all tests of SPECint and SPECfp).

Features

In addition to the four CPU cores, the SoC integrates a 32 EU Intel UHD Graphics GPU clocked from 350 - 850 MHz and a dual-channel DDR4 / quad-channel LPDDR4x memory controller (up to 16 GB and 2933 MHz). The chip now also partly integrates Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+), 8 PCIe 3.0 lanes, 14 USB 2.0/ 3.2 ports and two SATA 6.0 ports. The package got bigger and measures 35 x 24 mm (compared to 25 x 24 mm for the N5030 e.g.). The SoC is directly soldered to the mainboard (BGA) and can't be easily replaced.

Performance

The average N6000 in our database proves to be an OK entry-level processor, as of late 2022, its multi-thread benchmark scores nearly matching those of the AMD Ryzen 3 3200U. Yes, the chip is a whole lot slower than the latest Ryzen 3 and Core i3 processors, but it will at least let you run your day-to-day apps without annoying slowdowns.

The Asus Vivobook 13 Slate is among the fastest systems built around the N6000 that we know of, thanks to the long-term CPU power limit of 10 W. It can be more than 20% faster in CPU-bound workloads than the slowest system featuring the same chip in our database, as of August 2023.

Power consumption

Like nearly all other N-class Intel processors, the Pentium N6000 has a default TDP of 6 W (also known as the long-term power limit). This is low and thus good enough for passively cooled tablets, laptops, mini-PCs.

The SoC is built with Intel's 2nd generation 10 nm process (not 10 nm SuperFin or Intel 7) for low, as of mid 2023, energy efficiency.

Intel Celeron N5095

The Intel Celeron N5095 is a quad-core SoC of the Jasper Lake product family designed for use in affordable SFF desktops and laptops. The Celeron was announced in early 2021. It features four Tremont CPU cores running at 2 GHz (base clock speed) Boosting up to 2.9 GHz (single-core Boost) with 1.5 MB of L2 and 4 MB of L3 cache but no thread-doubling Hyper-Threading technology. This processor is manufactured on Intel's first-gen 10 nm process to be not unlike the Ice Lake-U Core-series processors. The faster Celeron N5105 is notable for being more energy efficient (10 W TDP vs N5095's 15 W) yet featuring a faster iGPU model (24 EU UHD Graphics versus 16 EU UHD Graphics, with a higher clock rate to boot).

Architecture

Tremont architecture brings many improvements over the outgoing Goldmont architecture we know from Pentium N5030 and so many other N-class CPUs. According to Intel, the new architecture brings a 30% boost in single thread performance (+10% to +80% in SPECint and SPECfp depending on the test).

While the older N-class Celerons and Pentiums had to be content with up to 8 GB of DDR4-2400 RAM, Celeron N5095 is officially compatible with up to 16 GB of dual-channel DDR4-2933 or quad-channel LPDDR4x-2933 memory. Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+) support is partially baked into the chip. The Celeron supports up to 8 PCI-Express 3.0 lanes, up to 14 USB 3.2 ports and up to two SATA III ports. Four PCI-Express 3.0 lanes allow for read/write rates of up to 3.9 GB/s, provided a suitably fast NVMe SSD is used.

Jasper Lake processor package is larger compared to what Gemini Lake models had (35 x 24 mm vs. 25 x 24 mm). Please note that the Celeron gets soldered on to the motherboard (BGA1338 socket interface) and is thus not user-replaceable.

Performance

The average N5095 in our database matches the Core i3-10110U, Core i3-1005G1, Celeron N5105 and also the Ryzen 3 3200U, as far as multi-thread benchmark scores are concerned.

Even if the cooling system is great and the Power Limits are high as the sky, some slight architectural improvements together with the updated manufacturing node and higher-than-usual wattage of the Celeron are not nearly enough to let it compete with modern Core and Ryzen-series processors. It's a good option for basic day-to-day tasks, but anything beyond that will be a struggle.

Graphics

The CPU features the DirectX 12-capable 16 EU UHD Graphics iGPU running at 450 MHz to 750 MHz. The graphics adapter is capable of driving up to 3 displays with resolutions up to 4096x2160@60; it will happily decode HEVC, AVC, VP9, MPEG-2 and other popular video codecs. The latest AV1 codec is not supported, though. (You can still play such a video but it will be software-decoded rather than hardware-decoded which puts a hard limit on the watchable resolution as the CPU cores are not very fast here.)

This is not a gaming GPU by any stretch of imagination. It is just as fast as an HD Graphics 515; it will let you play the least demanding titles (like Dota 2 Reborn) provided you are OK with 720p resolution and lowest quality preset possible.

Power consumption

Most N-class Celerons and Pentiums have a 6 W TDP (also known as the long-term Power Limit). The Celeron N5095 on the other hand has a 15 Watt TDP to mimic much faster U-class Core i3/i5/i7 processors. This basically means that passively cooled designs are out of the question with this chip.

This Intel processor is manufactured on Intel's first-gen or second-gen 10 nm process [no precise data available] for OK, as of late 2022, energy efficiency.