Intel Atom N2600 vs Intel Core i7-960

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Intel Atom N2600 CPU1 vs CPU2 Intel Core i7-960
Intel Atom N2600 Intel Core i7-960

CPU comparison

In this CPU comparison, we compare the Intel Atom N2600 and the Intel Core i7-960 and use benchmarks to check which processor is faster.

We compare the Intel Atom N2600 2 core processor released in Q4/2011 with the Intel Core i7-960 which has 4 CPU cores and was introduced in Q4/2009.
Intel Atom (108) Family Intel Core i7 (298)
Intel Atom N2000 (3) CPU group Intel Core i7 900 (7)
3 Generation 1
Cedarview Architecture Bloomfield
Desktop / Server Segment Desktop / Server
-- Predecessor --
-- Successor --

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Intel Atom N2600 is a 2 core processor with a clock frequency of 1.60 GHz. The processor can compute 4 threads at the same time. The Intel Core i7-960 clocks with 3.20 GHz (3.46 GHz), has 4 CPU cores and can calculate 8 threads in parallel.

Intel Atom N2600 Characteristic Intel Core i7-960
2 Cores 4
4 Threads 8
normal Core architecture normal
Yes Hyperthreading Yes
No Overclocking ? No
1.60 GHz Frequency 3.20 GHz
-- Turbo Frequency (1 Core) 3.46 GHz
-- Turbo Frequency (All Cores) --

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. Algorithms for ML improve their performance the more data they have collected via software. ML tasks can be processed up to 10,000 times faster than with a classic processor.

Intel Atom N2600 Characteristic Intel Core i7-960
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

Graphics (iGPU) integrated into the processor not only enable image output without having to rely on a dedicated graphics solution, but can also efficiently accelerate video playback.

Intel GMA 3600 GPU no iGPU
0.40 GHz GPU frequency --
-- GPU (Turbo) --
-- GPU Generation --
65 nm Technology
2 Max. displays
4 Compute units --
32 Shader --
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
1 GB Max. GPU Memory --
10.1 DirectX Version --

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.

Intel GMA 3600 GPU no iGPU
No Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) No
No Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) No
No Codec h264 No
No Codec VP9 No
No Codec VP8 No
No Codec AV1 No
No Codec AVC No
No Codec VC-1 No
No Codec JPEG No

Memory & PCIe

Up to GB of memory in a maximum of 1 memory channels is supported by the Intel Atom N2600, while the Intel Core i7-960 supports a maximum of 24 GB of memory with a maximum memory bandwidth of 25.6 GB/s enabled.

Intel Atom N2600 Characteristic Intel Core i7-960
DDR3-1066 Memory DDR3-1066
Max. Memory 24 GB
1 (Single Channel) Memory channels 3
8.6 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 25.6 GB/s
No ECC No
-- L2 Cache 1.00 MB
1.00 MB L3 Cache 8.00 MB
-- PCIe version --
-- PCIe lanes --
-- PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The Intel Atom N2600 has a TDP of 3.5 W. The TDP of the Intel Core i7-960 is 130 W. System integrators use the TDP of the processor as a guide when dimensioning the cooling solution.

Intel Atom N2600 Characteristic Intel Core i7-960
3.5 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 130 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
-- Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Intel Atom N2600 has 1.00 MB cache and is manufactured in 32 nm. The cache of Intel Core i7-960 is at 9.00 MB. The processor is manufactured in 45 nm.

Intel Atom N2600 Characteristic Intel Core i7-960
32 nm Technology 45 nm
Monolithic Chip design Monolithic
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
SSE3 ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2
BGA 559 Socket LGA 1366
None Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT
No AES-NI No
Windows 10, Linux Operating systems Windows 10, Linux
Q4/2011 Release date Q4/2009
-- Release price 305 $
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Rate these processors

Here you can rate the Intel Atom N2600 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 1.0 stars (1 ratings). Rate now:
Here you can rate the Intel Core i7-960 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 3.7 stars (3 ratings). Rate now:


Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 1 CPU benchmarks
Intel Atom N2600 (16%)
Intel Core i7-960 (100%)
⌀ Multi core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
Intel Atom N2600 (11%)
Intel Core i7-960 (100%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Intel Atom N2600 Intel Atom N2600
2C 4T @ 1.60 GHz
92 (16%)
Intel Core i7-960 Intel Core i7-960
4C 8T @ 3.46 GHz
576 (100%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Intel Atom N2600 Intel Atom N2600
2C 4T @ 1.60 GHz
249 (11%)
Intel Core i7-960 Intel Core i7-960
4C 8T @ 3.20 GHz
2370 (100%)

Estimated results for PassMark CPU Mark

Some of the CPUs listed below have been benchmarked by CPU-monkey. However the majority of CPUs have not been tested and the results have been estimated by a CPU-monkey’s secret proprietary formula. As such they do not accurately reflect the actual Passmark CPU mark values and are not endorsed by PassMark Software Pty Ltd.
Intel Atom N2600 Intel Atom N2600
2C 4T @ 1.60 GHz
323 (10%)
Intel Core i7-960 Intel Core i7-960
4C 8T @ 3.20 GHz
3266 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The single-core benchmark only evaluates the performance of the fastest CPU core, the number of CPU cores in a processor is irrelevant here.
Intel Atom N2600 Intel Atom N2600
2C 4T @ 1.60 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i7-960 Intel Core i7-960
4C 8T @ 3.46 GHz
610 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The multi-core benchmark evaluates the performance of all of the processor's CPU cores. Virtual thread improvements such as AMD SMT or Intel's Hyper-Threading have a positive impact on the benchmark result.
Intel Atom N2600 Intel Atom N2600
2C 4T @ 1.60 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i7-960 Intel Core i7-960
4C 8T @ 3.20 GHz
2130 (100%)

iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)

The theoretical computing performance of the internal graphics unit of the processor with simple accuracy (32 bit) in GFLOPS. GFLOPS indicates how many billion floating point operations the iGPU can perform per second.
Intel Atom N2600 Intel Atom N2600
Intel GMA 3600 @ 0.40 GHz
26 (100%)
Intel Core i7-960 Intel Core i7-960
@ 0.00 GHz
0 (0%)

CPU-Z Benchmark 17 (Multi-Core)

The CPU-Z benchmark measures a processor's performance by measuring the time it takes the system to complete all benchmark calculations. The faster the benchmark is completed, the higher the score.
Intel Atom N2600 Intel Atom N2600
2C 4T @ 1.60 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i7-960 Intel Core i7-960
4C 8T @ 3.20 GHz
1503 (100%)

Devices using this processor

Intel Atom N2600 Intel Core i7-960
Unknown Unknown

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