AMD Athlon 240GE vs Intel Core i5-3330S Comparison

The Intel Core i5-3330S and AMD Athlon 240GE occupy the same performance tier, both landing at the 32nd percentile of all CPUs, with average benchmark scores of 1128 and 1121 respectively. The data, however, tells a clear story of generational progression: the AMD part, launched in late 2018, holds a consistent lead across every shared benchmark, while the Intel chip, a 2012-era quad-core, fights back only with its additional physical cores. The head-to-head results reveal a systematic 14% advantage for the Athlon in all five comparisons, making this less a close contest and more a demonstration of how architectural efficiency can overcome a core-count deficit.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Athlon 240GE wins everywhere the two are directly compared. In the head-to-head benchmark suite, it takes all five tests, with winning margins ranging from 14.1% to 14.4% across Cinebench R15, R20, and R23 in both single-core and multi-core workloads. This is not a narrow victory in one specific task; it is a comprehensive sweep that indicates the Zen architecture’s superior instructions-per-clock and higher base frequency are decisive across the board.

The Intel Core i5-3330S, by contrast, wins no direct comparison. Its only potential advantage lies in its four physical cores versus the Athlon’s two, but the benchmark data shows this does not translate into a win. In multi-core tests, the Athlon’s 4 MB of shared L3 cache and higher 3.50 GHz base clock (with no boost) are enough to overcome the i5’s 6 MB L3 and 3.20 GHz boost ceiling. The i5’s 77 W TDP does suggest it may sustain heavy loads better in theory, but the data does not include a sustained-load stress test, so any such advantage remains speculative.

The Athlon’s win is most pronounced in single-threaded performance, where it leads by 14.4% in Cinebench R20 single-core (229 vs 196) and 14.3% in R23 single-core (547 vs 469). This is the critical differentiator, as single-core speed remains the foundation for most everyday responsiveness and lightly-threaded applications.

Architecture Differences

The two processors come from different eras and design philosophies. The Intel i5-3330S is built on Intel’s 22 nm Ivy Bridge process, featuring a die size of 133 mm². It packs four physical cores with four threads, each core having 64 KB of L1 and 256 KB of L2 cache, plus a shared 6 MB L3. Its memory support is DDR3 over a dual-channel bus, and it connects via PCIe Gen 3 with 16 lanes. The integrated graphics are Intel HD 2500, and the chip is locked (multiplier not unlocked). It launched in September 2012.

The AMD Athlon 240GE represents the Zen architecture (Raven Ridge) on GlobalFoundries’ 14 nm process, with a substantially larger die at 209.8 mm² and 4,950 million transistors. It has only two physical cores but four threads via SMT, with a larger per-core L1 (96 KB) and L2 (512 KB), though a smaller shared L3 at 4 MB. Memory support jumps to DDR4 with a rated bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s, and PCIe is Gen 3 but limited to 8 lanes. The integrated GPU is the more capable Radeon Vega 3. It launched in December 2018 and remains in active production, with a launch MSRP of $75.

The most striking difference is the base clock: the Athlon runs at 3.50 GHz with no boost clock, while the i5 sits at 2.70 GHz base and boosts to 3.20 GHz. Even at its maximum boost, the i5 cannot match the Athlon’s sustained base frequency. The TDP gap is massive (77 W vs 35 W), suggesting the AMD part is far more power-efficient per unit of performance, though the benchmark data does not directly measure power draw.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head results are remarkably consistent, with the AMD Athlon 240GE winning every test by nearly the same margin. In Cinebench R15 multi-core, the Athlon scores 390 against the i5’s 335, a 14.1% deficit for Intel. This is the smallest relative gap, likely because the i5’s four physical cores help close the distance in a heavily threaded workload. Moving to Cinebench R20 multi-core, the Athlon posts 1627 versus 1396, a 14.2% lead. The pattern holds in R23 multi-core: 3876 for AMD, 3326 for Intel, again a 14.2% margin.

Single-core tests show an even wider relative gap. In Cinebench R20 single-core, the Athlon scores 229, the i5 only 196 — a 14.4% difference. Cinebench R23 single-core sees the Athlon at 547 and the i5 at 469, a 14.3% gap. These single-core margins are slightly larger than the multi-core ones, which is telling: the i5’s extra cores do not help it in single-threaded tasks, and its lower clock speed becomes a liability. The data suggests that for any workload that is not perfectly parallelized across four or more threads, the Athlon will pull ahead.

The i5 does have a presence in the broader benchmark database, with scores in Geekbench multi-core (1625) and single-core (549) that are not matched by a corresponding Athlon entry in the head-to-head set. However, those Geekbench numbers are not comparable to the Athlon’s Cinebench scores, and the head-to-head data remains the definitive comparison. The i5’s average benchmark score of 1128 is only 0.6% higher than the Athlon’s 1121, a negligible difference that is well within the margin of error for a single benchmark suite.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the AMD Athlon 240GE is the faster processor in every measurable category shared between the two. It wins all five head-to-head tests with margins between 14.1% and 14.4%, and it does so while consuming less than half the power (35 W vs 77 W TDP). The i5-3330S’s four physical cores are not enough to overcome the Athlon’s architectural advantages in clock speed, IPC, and memory bandwidth (42.7 GB/s vs unspecified for the i5).

For a user prioritizing raw multi-threaded throughput, one might expect the i5 to have a chance, but the multi-core results show it trailing by 14.2% in both R20 and R23. The Athlon’s higher base clock (3.50 GHz vs 2.70 GHz) and modern Zen cores simply deliver more work per clock, and its SMT threads effectively compensate for the missing physical cores. The i5’s only theoretical advantages are its larger L3 cache (6 MB vs 4 MB) and 16 PCIe lanes versus 8, but neither shows up in the benchmark scores.

The choice is clear for a new build: the Athlon 240GE offers superior performance across the board, a more modern platform (AM4 socket, DDR4 memory), and a more capable integrated GPU. The i5-3330S might appeal to someone with an existing LGA1155 motherboard and DDR3 memory, but the benchmark data offers no performance reason to choose it. The Athlon also remains in active production, while the i5’s production status is not listed, suggesting availability may be a factor.

FAQ

Q: Which processor has a higher single-core performance?

A: The AMD Athlon 240GE wins all single-core tests, scoring 229 in Cinebench R20 single-core and 547 in R23 single-core, compared to the Intel i5-3330S’s 196 and 469, representing a 14.4% and 14.3% lead respectively.

Q: Does the Intel i5-3330S’s four cores give it a multi-core advantage?

A: No. Despite having four physical cores versus the Athlon’s two, the i5 loses every multi-core test, trailing by 14.1% in Cinebench R15 (335 vs 390) and 14.2% in both R20 (1396 vs 1627) and R23 (3326 vs 3876).

Q: How do their power requirements compare?

A: The AMD Athlon 240GE has a TDP of 35 W, while the Intel Core i5-3330S is rated at 77 W, making the Athlon significantly more power-efficient on paper.

Q: What memory types do they support?

A: The Intel i5-3330S supports DDR3 memory over a dual-channel bus, while the AMD Athlon 240GE supports DDR4 with a rated bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s.

Q: Are these processors performance-equivalent overall?

A: Their average benchmark scores are nearly identical (1128 for the i5, 1121 for the Athlon, a 0.6% difference), but the head-to-head data shows the Athlon winning all five shared tests by roughly 14%, indicating the averages mask a consistent advantage for AMD.

Q: Which has better integrated graphics?

A: The AMD Athlon 240GE features a Radeon Vega 3, while the Intel i5-3330S has an Intel HD 2500. The benchmark data does not include graphics tests, but the Vega 3 is the more modern implementation.

Specification Differences

| Specification | Intel Core i5-3330S | AMD Athlon 240GE |

|---|---|---|

| Cores | 4 | 2 |

| Threads | 4 | 4 |

| Base Clock | 2.70 GHz | 3.50 GHz |

| Boost Clock | 3.20 GHz | None |

| TDP | 77 W | 35 W |

| Socket | Intel Socket 1155 | AMD Socket AM4 |

| Architecture | Ivy Bridge | Zen |

| Process Node | 22 nm | 14 nm |

| Foundry | Intel | GlobalFoundries |

| Die Size | 133 mm² | 209.8 mm² |

| Transistors | Not listed | 4,950 million |

| L1 Cache | 64 KB (per core) | 96 KB (per core) |

| L2 Cache | 256 KB (per core) | 512 KB (per core) |

| L3 Cache | 6 MB (shared) | 4 MB (shared) |

| Memory Support | DDR3 | DDR4 |

| Memory Bandwidth | Not listed | 42.7 GB/s |

| PCIe | Gen 3, 16 Lanes (CPU only) | Gen 3, 8 Lanes (CPU only) |

| Integrated Graphics | Intel HD 2500 | Radeon Vega 3 |

| Release Date | 2012-09-02 | 2018-12-20 |

| Production Status | Not listed | Active |

| Launch MSRP | Not listed | $75 |

| Multiplier Unlocked | No | No |