Intel Core i7-3520M vs Intel Core i3-7100

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Intel Core i7-3520M CPU1 vs CPU2 Intel Core i3-7100
Intel Core i7-3520M Intel Core i3-7100

CPU comparison

Intel Core i7-3520M or Intel Core i3-7100 - 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 i7-3520M has 2 cores with 4 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 3.60 GHz. Up to 32 GB of memory is supported in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core i7-3520M was released in Q2/2012.

The Intel Core i3-7100 has 2 cores with 4 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 3.90 GHz. The CPU supports up to 64 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core i3-7100 was released in Q1/2017.
Intel Core i7 (293) Family Intel Core i3 (202)
Intel Core i 3000M (29) CPU group Intel Core i 7000 (17)
3 Generation 7
Ivy Bridge H Architecture Kaby Lake S
Mobile Segment Desktop / Server
-- Predecessor Intel Core i3-6100
-- Successor Intel Core i3-8100

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Intel Core i7-3520M is a 2 core processor with a clock frequency of 2.90 GHz (3.60 GHz). The Intel Core i3-7100 has 2 CPU cores with a clock frequency of 3.90 GHz.

Intel Core i7-3520M Characteristic Intel Core i3-7100
2 Cores 2
4 Threads 4
normal Core architecture normal
Yes Hyperthreading Yes
No Overclocking ? No
2.90 GHz Frequency 3.90 GHz
3.60 GHz Turbo Frequency (1 Core) --
3.40 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 Core i7-3520M Characteristic Intel Core i3-7100
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

The integrated graphics unit of a processor is not only responsible for the pure image output on the system, but can also significantly increase the efficiency of the system with the support of modern video codecs.

Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU Intel HD Graphics 630
0.65 GHz GPU frequency 0.35 GHz
1.25 GHz GPU (Turbo) 1.10 GHz
7 GPU Generation 9.5
22 nm Technology 14 nm
3 Max. displays 3
16 Compute units 24
128 Shader 192
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
2 GB Max. GPU Memory 64 GB
11.0 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 4000 GPU Intel HD Graphics 630
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 No
Decode / Encode Codec AVC Decode / Encode
Decode Codec VC-1 Decode
Decode Codec JPEG Decode / Encode

Memory & PCIe

The Intel Core i7-3520M supports a maximum of 32 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core i3-7100 can connect up to 64 GB of memory in 2 memory channels.

Intel Core i7-3520M Characteristic Intel Core i3-7100
DDR3L-1333, DDR3L-1600, DDR3-1333, DDR3-1600 Memory DDR4-2400, DDR3-1600
32 GB Max. Memory 64 GB
2 (Dual Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
25.6 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 38.4 GB/s
No ECC No
-- L2 Cache --
4.00 MB L3 Cache 3.00 MB
3.0 PCIe version 3.0
16 PCIe lanes 16
15.8 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth 15.8 GB/s

Thermal Management

The TDP (Thermal Design Power) of a processor specifies the required cooling solution. The Intel Core i7-3520M has a TDP of 35 W, that of the Intel Core i3-7100 is 51 W.

Intel Core i7-3520M Characteristic Intel Core i3-7100
35 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 51 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
-- Tjunction max. 100 °C

Technical details

The Intel Core i7-3520M has a 4.00 MB cache, while the Intel Core i3-7100 cache has a total of 3.00 MB.

Intel Core i7-3520M Characteristic Intel Core i3-7100
22 nm Technology 14 nm
Monolithic Chip design Monolithic
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2
BGA 1023 Socket LGA 1151
VT-x, VT-x EPT Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d
Yes AES-NI Yes
Windows 10, Linux Operating systems Windows 10, Linux
Q2/2012 Release date Q1/2017
346 $ Release price --
show more data show more data


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Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 2 CPU benchmarks
⌀ Multi core performance in 4 CPU benchmarks

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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.60 GHz
740 (76%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
973 (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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
1613 (78%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
2076 (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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.60 GHz
685 (56%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
1225 (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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
1446 (59%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
2436 (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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
Intel HD Graphics 4000 @ 1.25 GHz
320 (76%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
Intel HD Graphics 630 @ 1.10 GHz
422 (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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
2862 (66%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
4360 (100%)

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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 2.90 GHz
835 (76%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
1104 (100%)

Cinebench R23 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.60 GHz
621 (100%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
0 (0%)

Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
1273 (100%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
0 (0%)

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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
663 (100%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
375 (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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.60 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
168 (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 i7-3520M Intel Core i7-3520M
2C 4T @ 3.40 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i3-7100 Intel Core i3-7100
2C 4T @ 3.90 GHz
425 (100%)

Devices using this processor

Intel Core i7-3520M Intel Core i3-7100
Unknown Unknown

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