Intel Core i3-2120T vs AMD A8-3870K

Last updated: 2024-04-16

CPU comparison with benchmarks


Intel Core i3-2120T		AMD A8-3870K
CPU comparison Intel Core i3-2120T or AMD A8-3870K - 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 i3-2120T has 2 cores with 4 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 2.60 GHz. Up to 32 GB of memory is supported in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core i3-2120T was released in Q3/2011. The AMD A8-3870K has 4 cores with 4 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 3.10 GHz. The CPU supports up to GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The AMD A8-3870K was released in Q4/2011.

Intel Core i3 (205)	Family	AMD A (112)
Intel Core i 2000 (28)	CPU group	AMD A8-3000 (4)
2	Generation	1
Sandy Bridge S	Architecture	Llano (K10)
Desktop / Server	Segment	Desktop / Server
--	Predecessor	--
--	Successor	--

CPU Cores and Base Frequency The Intel Core i3-2120T has 2 CPU cores and can calculate 4 threads in parallel. The clock frequency of the Intel Core i3-2120T is 2.60 GHz while the AMD A8-3870K has 4 CPU cores and 4 threads can calculate simultaneously. The clock frequency of the AMD A8-3870K is at 3.10 GHz.
Intel Core i3-2120T	Characteristic	AMD A8-3870K
2	Cores	4
4	Threads	4
normal	Core architecture	normal
Yes	Hyperthreading	No
No	Overclocking ?	Yes
2.60 GHz	Frequency	3.10 GHz
--	Turbo Frequency (1 Core)	--
--	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 Core i3-2120T	Characteristic	AMD A8-3870K
--	AI hardware	--
--	AI specifications	--

Internal Graphics The Intel Core i3-2120T or AMD A8-3870K 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	AMD Radeon HD 6550D
0.65 GHz	GPU frequency	0.60 GHz
1.10 GHz	GPU (Turbo)	--
6	GPU Generation	3
32 nm	Technology	32 nm
2	Max. displays	2
6	Compute units	5
48	Shader	400
No	Hardware Raytracing	No
No	Frame Generation	No
2 GB	Max. GPU Memory	1 GB
10.1	DirectX Version	11

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	AMD Radeon HD 6550D
No	Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit)	No
No	Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit)	No
Decode / Encode	Codec h264	Decode
No	Codec VP9	No
No	Codec VP8	No
No	Codec AV1	No
Decode / Encode	Codec AVC	Decode
Decode	Codec VC-1	Decode
No	Codec JPEG	Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe The Intel Core i3-2120T can use up to 32 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The maximum memory bandwidth is 21.3 GB/s. The AMD A8-3870K supports up to GB of memory in 2 memory channels and achieves a memory bandwidth of up to 25.6 GB/s.
Intel Core i3-2120T	Characteristic	AMD A8-3870K
DDR3-1066, DDR3-1333	Memory	DDR3-1600
32 GB	Max. Memory
2 (Dual Channel)	Memory channels	2 (Dual Channel)
21.3 GB/s	Max. Bandwidth	25.6 GB/s
No	ECC	No
--	L2 Cache	--
3.00 MB	L3 Cache	4.00 MB
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 i3-2120T is 35 W, while the AMD A8-3870K has a TDP of 100 W. The TDP specifies the necessary cooling solution that is required to cool the processor sufficiently.
Intel Core i3-2120T	Characteristic	AMD A8-3870K
35 W	TDP (PL1 / PBP)	100 W
--	TDP (PL2)	--
--	TDP up	--
--	TDP down	--
--	Tjunction max.	--
Technical details The Intel Core i3-2120T is manufactured in 32 nm and has 3.00 MB cache. The AMD A8-3870K is manufactured in 32 nm and has a 4.00 MB cache.
Intel Core i3-2120T	Characteristic	AMD A8-3870K
32 nm	Technology	32 nm
Monolithic	Chip design	Unknown
x86-64 (64 bit)	Instruction set (ISA)	x86-64 (64 bit)
SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX	ISA extensions	SSE3, SSE4a
LGA 1155	Socket	FM1
VT-x, VT-x EPT	Virtualization	AMD-V
Yes	AES-NI	No
Windows 10, Linux	Operating systems	Windows 10, Linux
Q3/2011	Release date	Q4/2011
121 $	Release price	80 $

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Intel Core i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz buy now on Amazon and save! AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz buy now on Amazon and save!

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Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 0 CPU benchmarks

Intel Core i3-2120T (0%)

AMD A8-3870K (0%)

⌀ Multi core performance in 1 CPU benchmarks

Intel Core i3-2120T (41%)

AMD A8-3870K (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 i3-2120T Intel HD Graphics 2000 @ 1.10 GHz	106 (22%)
	AMD A8-3870K AMD Radeon HD 6550D @ 0.60 GHz	480 (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 i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz	1502 (41%)
	AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz	3684 (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 i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz	515 (100%)
	AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz	0 (0%)

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 i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz	1202 (100%)
	AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz	0 (0%)

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 i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz	418 (100%)
	AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz	0 (0%)

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 i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz	903 (100%)
	AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz	0 (0%)

Cinebench R20 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R20 is the successor of Cinebench R15 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.


	Intel Core i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz	0 (0%)
	AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz	176 (100%)

Cinebench R20 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R20 is the successor of Cinebench R15 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.


	Intel Core i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz	0 (0%)
	AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz	666 (100%)

Cinebench R15 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.


	Intel Core i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz	0 (0%)
	AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz	77 (100%)

Cinebench R15 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.


	Intel Core i3-2120T 2C 4T @ 2.60 GHz	0 (0%)
	AMD A8-3870K 4C 4T @ 3.10 GHz	302 (100%)

Devices using this processor
Intel Core i3-2120T	AMD A8-3870K
Unknown	Unknown

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