Intel Core i5-680 vs Intel Core i7-3537U Comparison

The Intel Core i5-680 wins this matchup, and it is not close. The database records a clean sweep across all five head-to-head benchmarks, with the desktop Clarkdale part leading by roughly 12 percent in every single test. Both CPUs sit at the 21st percentile against the broader processor population, which tells you immediately that this is a contest between two low-end legacy chips rather than a fight for relevance in a modern lineup. What the comparison actually reveals is a trade-off between raw clock speed on one side and power efficiency plus a newer architecture on the other.

FAQ

Q: Which CPU is faster in benchmarks?

A: The Core i5-680 wins all five recorded head-to-head tests. In Cinebench R15 multi-core it scores 226 against 201, in R20 multi-core 942 against 839, in R20 single-core 132 against 118, in R23 multi-core 2243 against 1998, and in R23 single-core 316 against 282. Every margin lands between roughly 12 and 12.4 percent in favor of the i5-680.

Q: How power-hungry are these two chips?

A: Very differently. The i5-680 carries a 73 W thermal design power, while the i7-3537U is rated at just 17 W. That gap reflects their markets: one is a desktop processor, the other a mobile part soldered to a BGA 1023 package.

Q: Do they have the same core and thread counts?

A: Yes. Both are dual-core processors with four threads, and both carry the same cache configuration: 64 KB of L1 per core, 256 KB of L2 per core, and 4 MB of shared L3.

Q: Which processor uses the newer manufacturing process?

A: The i7-3537U. It is built on Intel's 22 nm Ivy Bridge architecture, whereas the i5-680 is a 32 nm Westmere design codenamed Clarkdale.

Q: Where do these chips rank against all CPUs in the database?

A: Both sit at the 21st percentile. Their average benchmark scores are nearly identical too: 772 for the i5-680 and 766 for the i7-3537U.

Q: What was the launch MSRP of the i5-680?

A: Its launch MSRP was $294. No launch MSRP figure is recorded for the i7-3537U.

Where Each One Wins

The i5-680 wins everywhere performance is measured. It takes the multi-core Cinebench runs by about 12 percent and the single-core runs by about 12 percent as well, meaning its advantage comes from outright clock speed and sustained desktop-class operation rather than any threading benefit, since both chips have identical core and thread counts. Its 3.60 GHz base clock and 3.87 GHz boost simply outrun the mobile chip's 2.0 GHz base and 3.20 GHz boost.

The i7-3537U wins on efficiency and platform integration. Its 17 W TDP is the entire reason it exists: it fits into thin laptops where a 73 W desktop processor is physically and thermally impossible. It also carries Intel HD 4000 integrated graphics, a generational leap over the basic Intel HD graphics in the Clarkdale part, and it benefits from the 22 nm tri-gate-era process node versus 32 nm. If the question is "which chip delivers respectable performance per watt in a notebook," the answer is the i7. If the question is "which chip finishes a render faster," the answer is the i5, every time.

It is worth noting the i7-3537U also has Geekbench results in the database, 1269 multi-core and 658 single-core, tests for which no comparable i5-680 entries exist. Those figures place it in company with rivals such as the AMD A8-6600K (average score 764) and the Intel Core i3-3240 (average score 761), both of which it edges out slightly on aggregate.

Architecture Differences

These are two Intel designs separated by a full architectural generation. The i5-680 belongs to Westmere, codename Clarkdale, fabricated on Intel's own 32 nm process. It packs 382 million transistors into an 81 mm² die. The i7-3537U is Ivy Bridge through and through, built on a 22 nm process with a larger 118 mm² die, for which the database records no transistor count.

Despite the node shrink, the cache hierarchy is identical between the two: 64 KB of L1 and 256 KB of L2 per core, plus 4 MB of shared L3. With the same two cores and four threads on both sides, the architectural differences come down to process density, graphics, and platform plumbing rather than core counts.

The integrated graphics story favors the newer chip. The i5-680 ships with first-generation Intel HD graphics, while the i7-3537U includes Intel HD 4000, the Ivy Bridge-era GPU that replaced it. On PCIe, the i5-680 records Gen 2 with 16 lanes from the CPU; no PCIe data is recorded for the mobile part. Both support DDR3 memory over a dual-channel bus, but only the i5-680 has a recorded bandwidth figure of 21.3 GB/s. Neither supports ECC memory, and neither has an unlocked multiplier.

Specification Differences

The two processors differ in nearly every physical and platform specification while matching on the fundamentals:

• Socket and packaging: Socket 1156 for the i5-680, a replaceable desktop socket; BGA 1023 for the i7-3537U, meaning it is soldered directly to the motherboard.
• Clock speeds: 3.60 GHz base and 3.87 GHz boost on the i5-680, versus a 2.0 GHz base and 3.20 GHz boost on the i7-3537U.
• TDP: 73 W desktop-class versus 17 W mobile-class.
• Process node: 32 nm versus 22 nm.
• Market segment: Desktop versus Mobile.
• Release timing: the i5-680 arrived on April 18, 2010; the i7-3537U followed on January 7, 2013.
• Production status: the i5-680 is marked end-of-life; no status is recorded for the i7-3537U.
• Graphics: Intel HD versus Intel HD 4000.
• Die size and transistors: 81 mm² and 382 million transistors for the i5-680; 118 mm² for the i7-3537U with no transistor count recorded.

Where they match: two cores, four threads, identical cache at every level, DDR3 support on a dual-channel bus, no ECC, locked multipliers, and matching part numbers of SLBTM and SR0XG respectively.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The pattern across the recorded tests is remarkably consistent, and that consistency is itself informative.

Cinebench R15 multi-core: 226 for the i5-680 versus 201 for the i7-3537U, a 12.4 percent win for the desktop chip. Cinebench R20 multi-core: 942 versus 839, a 12.3 percent gap. Cinebench R20 single-core: 132 versus 118, an 11.9 percent gap. Cinebench R23 multi-core: 2243 versus 1998, 12.3 percent. Cinebench R23 single-core: 316 versus 282, 12.1 percent.

Read those numbers together and a single conclusion emerges. Because single-core and multi-core margins are essentially the same, the i5-680's advantage is purely a per-thread clock-speed effect. There is no scheduler trick, no cache advantage, and no threading edge at work, the cache layouts and thread counts are identical. The Clarkdale chip simply sustains higher frequencies under load, which is exactly what you would expect from a 73 W desktop part competing against a 17 W ultrabook-class processor.

Context from the wider database reinforces how close these two really are on aggregate. The i5-680's average score of 772 places it within a fraction of a percent of rivals like the Intel Core i7-3687U at 773, the Intel Celeron G5920 at 775, and the Intel Core i3-3250T at 775. The i7-3537U's average of 766 puts it just ahead of the AMD A8-6600K at 764 and the Intel Core i3-3240 at 761. Notably, the i5-680 itself appears in the i7-3537U's rival list, sitting under one percent above it. These are peers in the grand scheme of the database, even though the older desktop chip wins every direct measurement.

The Verdict

Choose the Core i5-680 if performance is the only criterion that matters. It wins every benchmark on record, by margins of roughly 12 percent across the board, and it does so in both single-core and multi-core workloads. Someone running Cinebench-style rendering or any frequency-sensitive workload on legacy hardware gets strictly better results from the Clarkdale part. Its launch MSRP was $294, and it is now end-of-life.

Choose the Core i7-3537U if the machine is a laptop. The 17 W TDP is the deciding fact here: it delivers performance within about 12 percent of a 73 W desktop processor while drawing a fraction of the power, and it pairs that with Intel HD 4000 graphics instead of the older basic Intel HD. Its BGA packaging means it was never a purchase decision in the same sense anyway, it came soldered into notebooks.

The honest summary from the data: the i5-680 is the faster chip, the i7-3537U is the more efficient and more modern one, and both occupy the same 21st percentile tier of the database. Neither is competitive by contemporary standards, but between the two, desktop speed goes to Clarkdale and mobility goes to Ivy Bridge.