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Core i5-2520M vs i7-6500U


Description
The i5-2520M is based on Sandy Bridge architecture while the i7-6500U is based on Skylake.

Using the multithread performance as a reference, the i5-2520M gets a score of 50.2 k points while the i7-6500U gets 78.7 k points.

Summarizing, the i7-6500U is 1.6 times faster than the i5-2520M . To get a proper comparison between both models, take a look to the data shown below.

Specs
CPUID
206a7
406e3
Core
Sandy Bridge
Skylake-U
Architecture
Base frecuency
2.5 GHz
2.5 GHz
Boost frecuency
3.2 GHz
3.1 GHz
Socket
BGA1023
BGA1356
Cores/Threads
2/2
2/4
TDP
35 W
15 W
Cache L1 (d+i)
2x32+2x32 kB
2x32+2x32 kB
Cache L2
2x256 kB
4096 kB
Cache L3
3072 kB
kB
Date
February 2011
September 2015
Mean monothread perf.
24.13k points
46.25k points
Mean multithread perf.
50.23k points
97.52k points

Non-optimized benchmark
The benchmark in Mode 0 (FPU) measures cpu performance with non-optimized software. It uses the basic µinstructions from the i386 architecture with the i387 floating point unit. This mode is compatible with all CPUs so it's practical to compare very different CPUs
Monothread
i5-2520M
i7-6500U
Test#1 (Integers)
2.69k
2.98k (x1.11)
Test#2 (FP)
7.28k
12.19k (x1.67)
Test#3 (Generic, ZIP)
3.84k
3.91k (x1.02)
Test#1 (Memory)
3.05k
5.3k (x1.74)
TOTAL
16.86k
24.37k (x1.45)

Multithread

i5-2520M

i7-6500U
Test#1 (Integers)
6.08k
6.1k (x1)
Test#2 (FP)
16.15k
28.73k (x1.78)
Test#3 (Generic, ZIP)
8.87k
9.56k (x1.08)
Test#1 (Memory)
3.06k
6.71k (x2.2)
TOTAL
34.15k
51.09k (x1.5)

AVX optimized benchmark
The benchmark in mode II (AVX) is optimized to used 256 bits registers beside the first version of the Advanced Vector Extensions (AVX). The first AVX compatible CPU was released in 2011.
Monothread
i5-2520M
i7-6500U
Test#1 (Integers)
9.04k
11.09k (x1.23)
Test#2 (FP)
8.03k
17.1k (x2.13)
Test#3 (Generic, ZIP)
4.06k
4.12k (x1.02)
Test#1 (Memory)
2.99k
5.58k (x1.87)
TOTAL
24.13k
37.9k (x1.57)

Multithread

i5-2520M

i7-6500U
Test#1 (Integers)
19.82k
23.3k (x1.18)
Test#2 (FP)
18.12k
38.52k (x2.13)
Test#3 (Generic, ZIP)
9.23k
9.95k (x1.08)
Test#1 (Memory)
3.06k
6.95k (x2.27)
TOTAL
50.23k
78.72k (x1.57)

Performance/W
i5-2520M
i7-6500U
Test#1 (Integers)
566 points/W
1553 points/W
Test#2 (FP)
518 points/W
2568 points/W
Test#3 (Generic, ZIP)
264 points/W
663 points/W
Test#1 (Memory)
88 points/W
463 points/W
TOTAL
1435 points/W
5248 points/W

Performance/GHz
i5-2520M
i7-6500U
Test#1 (Integers)
2826 points/GHz
3579 points/GHz
Test#2 (FP)
2510 points/GHz
5516 points/GHz
Test#3 (Generic, ZIP)
1269 points/GHz
1330 points/GHz
Test#1 (Memory)
935 points/GHz
1801 points/GHz
TOTAL
7540 points/GHz
12225 points/GHz

Monothread performance graph
Monothread performance graphics gives the performance vs time. They are useful to measure the time it takes to the CPU to reach the maximum performance.

Usually, CPU's performance will be steady during these tests but if it has a slow frequency strategy, the first samples will show a lower score.


Test#1 (Integers) [points vs time]

grafica bm.hardlimit.com


Test#2 (FP) [points vs time]

grafica bm.hardlimit.com


Test#3 (Generic, ZIP) [points vs time]

grafica bm.hardlimit.com


Test#1 (Memory) [points vs time]

grafica bm.hardlimit.com

Multithread performance graph
Multithread graphs measure the performance against a heavy load during certain time.

If CPU's TDP doesn't limit the frequency and the machine is properly cooled, performance should remain steady vs time. Otherwise, the performance score will oscillate or decrease over time.


Test#1 (Integers) [points vs time]

grafica bm.hardlimit.com


Test#2 (FP) [points vs time]

grafica bm.hardlimit.com


Test#3 (Generic, ZIP) [points vs time]

grafica bm.hardlimit.com


Test#1 (Memory) [points vs time]

grafica bm.hardlimit.com

Hardlimit Benchmark Central - Ver. 3.11.4