Nintendo Switch vs AMD Phenom II X2 521

Last updated:

CPU comparison with benchmarks


Nintendo Switch CPU1 vs CPU2 AMD Phenom II X2 521
Nintendo Switch AMD Phenom II X2 521

CPU comparison

In this CPU comparison, we compare the Nintendo Switch and the AMD Phenom II X2 521 and use benchmarks to check which processor is faster.

We compare the Nintendo Switch 8 core processor released in Q1/2017 with the AMD Phenom II X2 521 which has 2 CPU cores and was introduced in Q2/2011.
NVIDIA Tegra (2) Family AMD Phenom II (52)
NVIDIA Tegra X1 (2) CPU group AMD Phenom II - 500 (2)
2 Generation 1
Cortex-A57/-A53 Architecture Regor (K10)
Mobile Segment Desktop / Server
-- Predecessor --
-- Successor --

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Nintendo Switch is a 8 core processor with a clock frequency of 1.00 GHz (1.75 GHz). The processor can compute 8 threads at the same time. The AMD Phenom II X2 521 clocks with 3.50 GHz, has 2 CPU cores and can calculate 2 threads in parallel.

Nintendo Switch Characteristic AMD Phenom II X2 521
8 Cores 2
8 Threads 2
hybrid (big.LITTLE) Core architecture normal
No Hyperthreading No
No Overclocking ? Yes
1.00 GHz (1.75 GHz)
4x Cortex-A57
A-Core 3.50 GHz
1.00 GHz (1.75 GHz)
4x Cortex-A53
B-Core --

NPU AI performance

The performance values of the processor's AI unit. The isolated NPU performance is specified here, the total AI performance (NPU+CPU+iGPU) can be higher. Processors with support for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors.

Nintendo Switch Characteristic AMD Phenom II X2 521
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --
-- NPU + CPU + iGPU --

Integrated graphics (iGPU)

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.

NVIDIA Tegra X1 (Maxwell) GPU no iGPU
0.30 GHz GPU frequency --
0.77 GHz GPU (Turbo) --
1 GPU Generation --
20 nm Technology
1 Max. displays
2 Compute units --
256 Shader --
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
2 GB Max. GPU Memory --
12 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.

NVIDIA Tegra X1 (Maxwell) GPU no iGPU
Decode Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) No
Decode Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) No
Decode / Encode Codec h264 No
Decode Codec VP9 No
Decode Codec VP8 No
No Codec AV1 No
Decode Codec AVC No
Decode Codec VC-1 No
Decode / Encode Codec JPEG No

Memory & PCIe

Up to 4 GB of memory in a maximum of 2 memory channels is supported by the Nintendo Switch, while the AMD Phenom II X2 521 supports a maximum of GB of memory with a maximum memory bandwidth of 21.3 GB/s enabled.

Nintendo Switch Characteristic AMD Phenom II X2 521
LPDDR4-3200 Memory DDR3-1333, DDR2-1066
4 GB Max. Memory
2 (Dual Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
25.6 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 21.3 GB/s
No ECC No
2.50 MB L2 Cache --
-- L3 Cache 2.00 MB
-- PCIe version --
-- PCIe lanes --
-- PCIe Bandwidth --

Thermal Management

The Nintendo Switch has a TDP of 5 W. The TDP of the AMD Phenom II X2 521 is 65 W. System integrators use the TDP of the processor as a guide when dimensioning the cooling solution.

Nintendo Switch Characteristic AMD Phenom II X2 521
5 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 65 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
5 W TDP down --
-- Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Nintendo Switch has 2.50 MB cache and is manufactured in 20 nm. The cache of AMD Phenom II X2 521 is at 2.00 MB. The processor is manufactured in 45 nm.

Nintendo Switch Characteristic AMD Phenom II X2 521
20 nm Technology 45 nm
Chiplet Chip design Unknown
Armv8-A (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
-- ISA extensions SSE3, SSE4a
-- Socket AM3
None Virtualization AMD-V
No AES-NI No
Operating systems Windows 10, Linux
Q1/2017 Release date Q2/2011
-- Release price 35 $
show more data show more data


Rate these processors

Here you can rate the Nintendo Switch to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 2.8 stars (8 ratings). Rate now:
Here you can rate the AMD Phenom II X2 521 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 0 stars (0 ratings). Rate now:


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.
Nintendo Switch Nintendo Switch
8C 8T @ 1.75 GHz
270 (100%)
AMD Phenom II X2 521 AMD Phenom II X2 521
2C 2T @ 3.50 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.
Nintendo Switch Nintendo Switch
8C 8T @ 1.00 GHz
702 (100%)
AMD Phenom II X2 521 AMD Phenom II X2 521
2C 2T @ 3.50 GHz
0 (0%)

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.
Nintendo Switch Nintendo Switch
NVIDIA Tegra X1 (Maxwell) @ 0.77 GHz
393 (100%)
AMD Phenom II X2 521 AMD Phenom II X2 521
@ 0.00 GHz
0 (0%)

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.
Nintendo Switch Nintendo Switch
8C 8T @ 1.00 GHz
0 (0%)
AMD Phenom II X2 521 AMD Phenom II X2 521
2C 2T @ 3.50 GHz
2253 (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.
Nintendo Switch Nintendo Switch
8C 8T @ 1.75 GHz
0 (0%)
AMD Phenom II X2 521 AMD Phenom II X2 521
2C 2T @ 3.50 GHz
92 (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.
Nintendo Switch Nintendo Switch
8C 8T @ 1.00 GHz
0 (0%)
AMD Phenom II X2 521 AMD Phenom II X2 521
2C 2T @ 3.50 GHz
177 (100%)

Devices using this processor

Nintendo Switch AMD Phenom II X2 521
Nintendo Switch Unknown

Popular comparisons containing this CPUs

1. Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for GalaxyNintendo Switch Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy vs Nintendo Switch
2. Qualcomm Snapdragon 865Nintendo Switch Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 vs Nintendo Switch
3. AMD A4-6300AMD Phenom II X2 521 AMD A4-6300 vs AMD Phenom II X2 521
4. AMD Phenom II X2 521AMD Phenom II X4 925 AMD Phenom II X2 521 vs AMD Phenom II X4 925
5. AMD Phenom II X4 945AMD Phenom II X2 521 AMD Phenom II X4 945 vs AMD Phenom II X2 521
6. AMD Phenom II X2 521AMD FX-9590 AMD Phenom II X2 521 vs AMD FX-9590
7. AMD Phenom II X2 521Intel Celeron 3755U AMD Phenom II X2 521 vs Intel Celeron 3755U
8. Intel Core i7-4790SAMD Phenom II X2 521 Intel Core i7-4790S vs AMD Phenom II X2 521
9. Intel Core i5-4210YAMD Phenom II X2 521 Intel Core i5-4210Y vs AMD Phenom II X2 521
10. AMD Phenom II X2 521Intel Celeron N3010 AMD Phenom II X2 521 vs Intel Celeron N3010


back to index