Intel Core i3-2120 vs MediaTek Dimensity 8020

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Intel Core i3-2120 CPU1 vs CPU2 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
Intel Core i3-2120 MediaTek Dimensity 8020

CPU comparison

Intel Core i3-2120 or MediaTek Dimensity 8020 - which processor is faster? In this comparison we look at the differences and analyze which of these two CPUs is better. We compare the technical data and benchmark results.

The Intel Core i3-2120 has 2 cores with 4 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 3.30 GHz. Up to 32 GB of memory is supported in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core i3-2120 was released in Q1/2011.

The MediaTek Dimensity 8020 has 8 cores with 8 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 2.60 GHz. The CPU supports up to 16 GB of memory in 4 memory channels. The MediaTek Dimensity 8020 was released in Q2/2023.
Intel Core i3 (205) Family Mediatek Dimensity (36)
Intel Core i 2000 (28) CPU group MediaTek Dimensity 8000 (4)
2 Generation 3
Sandy Bridge S Architecture Cortex-A78 / Cortex-A55
Desktop / Server Segment Mobile
-- Predecessor --
-- Successor --

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Intel Core i3-2120 has 2 CPU cores and can calculate 4 threads in parallel. The clock frequency of the Intel Core i3-2120 is 3.30 GHz while the MediaTek Dimensity 8020 has 8 CPU cores and 8 threads can calculate simultaneously. The clock frequency of the MediaTek Dimensity 8020 is at 2.60 GHz.

Intel Core i3-2120 Characteristic MediaTek Dimensity 8020
2 Cores 8
4 Threads 8
normal Core architecture hybrid (big.LITTLE)
Yes Hyperthreading No
No Overclocking ? No
3.30 GHz A-Core 2.60 GHz
4x Cortex-A78
-- B-Core 2.00 GHz
4x Cortex-A55

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 Core i3-2120 Characteristic MediaTek Dimensity 8020
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

The Intel Core i3-2120 or MediaTek Dimensity 8020 has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short. The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.

Intel HD Graphics 2000 GPU ARM Mali-G77 MP9
0.85 GHz GPU frequency 0.85 GHz
1.10 GHz GPU (Turbo) --
6 GPU Generation Vallhall 1
32 nm Technology 7 nm
2 Max. displays 1
6 Compute units 9
48 Shader 144
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
2 GB Max. GPU Memory 4 GB
10.1 DirectX Version 12

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 HD Graphics 2000 GPU ARM Mali-G77 MP9
No Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) Decode / Encode
No Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) Decode / Encode
Decode / Encode Codec h264 Decode / Encode
No Codec VP9 Decode / Encode
No Codec VP8 Decode / Encode
No Codec AV1 Decode
Decode / Encode Codec AVC Decode / Encode
Decode Codec VC-1 Decode / Encode
No Codec JPEG Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

The Intel Core i3-2120 can use up to 32 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The maximum memory bandwidth is 21.3 GB/s. The MediaTek Dimensity 8020 supports up to 16 GB of memory in 4 memory channels and achieves a memory bandwidth of up to 34.1 GB/s.

Intel Core i3-2120 Characteristic MediaTek Dimensity 8020
DDR3-1333 Memory LPDDR4X-4266
32 GB Max. Memory 16 GB
2 (Dual Channel) Memory channels 4 (Quad Channel)
21.3 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 34.1 GB/s
No ECC No
-- L2 Cache --
3.00 MB L3 Cache --
2.0 PCIe version --
16 PCIe lanes --
8.0 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The thermal design power (TDP for short) of the Intel Core i3-2120 is 65 W, while the MediaTek Dimensity 8020 has a TDP of --. The TDP specifies the necessary cooling solution that is required to cool the processor sufficiently.

Intel Core i3-2120 Characteristic MediaTek Dimensity 8020
65 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) --
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
-- Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Intel Core i3-2120 is manufactured in 32 nm and has 3.00 MB cache. The MediaTek Dimensity 8020 is manufactured in 5 nm and has a 0.00 MB cache.

Intel Core i3-2120 Characteristic MediaTek Dimensity 8020
32 nm Technology 5 nm
Monolithic Chip design Chiplet
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) Armv8-A (64 bit)
SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX ISA extensions --
LGA 1155 Socket --
VT-x, VT-x EPT Virtualization None
Yes AES-NI No
Windows 10, Linux Operating systems Android
Q1/2011 Release date Q2/2023
120 $ Release price --
show more data show more data


Rate these processors

Here you can rate the Intel Core i3-2120 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 2.3 stars (3 ratings). Rate now:
Here you can rate the MediaTek Dimensity 8020 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 4.2 stars (18 ratings). Rate now:


Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core i3-2120 (64%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 (100%)
⌀ Multi core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core i3-2120 (38%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 (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 Core i3-2120 Intel Core i3-2120
2C 4T @ 3.30 GHz
668 (80%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
839 (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 Core i3-2120 Intel Core i3-2120
2C 4T @ 3.30 GHz
1478 (44%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
3328 (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 Core i3-2120 Intel Core i3-2120
2C 4T @ 3.30 GHz
534 (47%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
1125 (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 Core i3-2120 Intel Core i3-2120
2C 4T @ 3.30 GHz
1140 (31%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
3631 (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 Core i3-2120 Intel Core i3-2120
Intel HD Graphics 2000 @ 1.10 GHz
106 (11%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
ARM Mali-G77 MP9 @ 0.85 GHz
979 (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 Core i3-2120 Intel Core i3-2120
2C 4T @ 3.30 GHz
1945 (100%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
0 (0%)

CPU-Z Benchmark 17 (Single-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 Core i3-2120 Intel Core i3-2120
2C 4T @ 3.30 GHz
268 (100%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
8C 8T @ 2.60 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 Core i3-2120 Intel Core i3-2120
2C 4T @ 3.30 GHz
783 (100%)
MediaTek Dimensity 8020 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
8C 8T @ 2.60 GHz
0 (0%)

Devices using this processor

Intel Core i3-2120 MediaTek Dimensity 8020
Unknown Unknown

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