Intel Atom N570

Intel Atom N570 is a dual-core, four-thread mobile processor from Intel’s Pineview generation, built on a 45 nm process with 176 million transistors and a die size of 87 mm². It operates at a fixed base clock of 1667 MHz with no boost capability, and its 9 W TDP classifies it as an ultra-low-power part aimed at basic mobile computing. The processor sits at the 50th percentile among all CPUs in the database, though it carries an average benchmark score of zero, indicating its performance profile is measured primarily through its architectural characteristics rather than raw throughput metrics.

How It Compares

The Intel Atom N570 has no direct rivals listed in the nearestRivals dataset, which means comparative analysis must rely on its absolute positioning within the broader CPU landscape. At the 50th percentile, this processor sits exactly at the median of all recorded CPUs, a placement that reflects its role as a low-end mobile part rather than a performance-oriented component. The absence of rival data prevents any direct percentage-based comparisons, but the percentile ranking alone signals that roughly half of all processors in the database outperform it, while the other half trail behind.

Without nearest rivals, the N570’s competitive context is defined by its own specifications. Its two cores and four threads via Hyper-Threading place it in the entry-level segment, and its 1667 MHz clock, with no boost, means it cannot dynamically raise frequencies under load. The 45 nm process node, while dated by modern standards, was contemporary for its 2011 release timeframe, and the 9 W TDP underscores a design philosophy prioritizing battery life and low heat output over computational muscle. This processor is not positioned to challenge mainstream or high-end parts; instead, its data suggests it was engineered for netbooks and low-power laptops where efficiency trumps speed.

The lack of benchmark scores further complicates direct comparison. With an average score of zero, the database indicates that no standardized benchmark results are available for this SKU, likely due to its end-of-life status and niche market segment. Consequently, any assessment of its performance relative to other CPUs must be inferred from its clock speed, core count, and cache hierarchy rather than empirical test data. The 50th percentile ranking, however, provides a useful anchor: it is neither a bottom-tier outlier nor a mid-range contender, but rather a median performer when all CPUs are ranked together.

Power and Thermals

The Intel Atom N570 carries a thermal design power (TDP) of exactly 9 watts, a figure that places it firmly in the ultra-low-power category. This TDP class implies a passive or very small active cooling solution is sufficient, typically a thin heatsink or a low-profile fan in a slim chassis. The 45 nm manufacturing process, while not the most advanced of its era, contributes to this modest thermal envelope by limiting leakage currents and switching losses. The processor’s 1667 MHz base clock, without any boost mechanism, ensures that power draw remains relatively constant under sustained load, avoiding the thermal spikes seen in higher-clocked parts with dynamic frequency scaling.

The 9 W TDP also has implications for system design. Motherboards for this chip, using the Intel BGA 559 socket, would not require robust VRM (voltage regulator module) phases or elaborate cooling channels, as the heat generated is minimal. The integrated graphics capability, noted as “on certain motherboards” as a chipset feature, adds no significant thermal burden when active, since it shares the same die and power budget. For end users, this means the N570 can operate in fanless configurations or with near-silent cooling, making it suitable for passively cooled portable devices where acoustic noise and battery drain are primary concerns.

Benchmark data does not include specific thermal measurements, but the TDP figure alone dictates the cooling tier. A 9 W processor is at the lower boundary of what requires any active cooling at all; many similar-class chips run comfortably with just a heat spreader and chassis ventilation. The absence of a boost clock further stabilizes thermal behavior, as the processor never enters a higher-power state that could overwhelm a minimal cooler. In practice, this makes the N570 an easy part to cool, but the trade-off is that its performance ceiling is strictly limited by this power budget.

Single-Thread vs Multi-Thread Behavior

The Atom N570’s architecture provides two physical cores with four threads, a configuration that allows it to handle multi-threaded workloads better than a pure dual-core without Hyper-Threading, but with significant limitations. In single-threaded tasks, the processor relies entirely on its 1667 MHz clock speed and per-core cache of 64 KB L1 and 512 KB L2. This modest clock, combined with the in-order execution design typical of Atom cores, means single-thread performance is low by any modern standard, the chip is suited for light tasks like web browsing or document editing, but it will struggle with computation-heavy applications that depend on a single thread’s throughput.

Multi-threaded behavior improves the picture somewhat, as the four threads allow the OS to schedule work across logical processors. However, the shared execution resources within each physical core mean that Hyper-Threading yields only a modest gain over two threads, often in the range of 10-20% for well-parallelized workloads, though no such percentage is provided in the data. The 512 KB L2 cache per core is small by current standards, which can cause performance degradation in workloads that exceed this cache capacity, forcing frequent memory accesses to the DDR2 or DDR3 system memory. The lack of L3 cache entirely amplifies this issue, as there is no shared cache to buffer data between cores.

For real-world usage, this split means the N570 behaves predictably: it is acceptable for single-threaded tasks that are not CPU-intensive, and it offers some multitasking capability through its four threads, but it is not designed for heavy parallel processing such as video encoding or 3D rendering. The 50th percentile ranking reflects this balanced-but-limited profile, as the processor does not excel in either single-thread or multi-thread metrics, but it does not catastrophically fail either. The absence of boost clock further cements this behavior, there is no headroom for transient performance increases when a workload demands more speed.

FAQ

Q: What is the manufacturing process of the Intel Atom N570?

A: The processor is built on Intel’s 45 nm process node, with 176 million transistors on a die size of 87 mm².

Q: Does the Atom N570 support ECC memory?

A: No, ECC memory is not supported; the processor supports DDR2 and DDR3 memory types without error correction.

Q: What is the clock speed of the Atom N570?

A: The base clock is fixed at 1667 MHz, and there is no boost clock available, meaning the processor cannot exceed this frequency.

Q: How many cores and threads does the Atom N570 have?

A: It has 2 physical cores and 4 threads, with 64 KB of L1 cache and 512 KB of L2 cache per core.

Q: What is the TDP of the Atom N570?

A: The thermal design power is 9 watts, which is typical for ultra-low-power mobile processors, allowing for compact cooling solutions.

Q: When was the Atom N570 released, and is it still in production?

A: The processor was released on February 28, 2011, and its production status is end-of-life, meaning it is no longer manufactured.

Benchmark Performance

The Intel Atom N570’s benchmark performance is characterized by a complete absence of recorded scores, its average benchmark score is listed as zero, and the nearestRivals array is empty. This lack of empirical data is unusual but not unexpected for a processor from this era, as standardized benchmark suites may not have been run on such low-power parts, or results were not archived. The 50th percentile ranking among all CPUs is the only quantitative performance indicator available, and it must be interpreted cautiously given the zero score. This percentile suggests that, when compared across the entire database, the N570 sits exactly in the middle, a position that aligns with its role as an entry-level mobile processor that outperforms older or more constrained chips but falls far short of desktop and high-performance mobile parts.

Without rival scores or delta percentages, any performance comparison must rely on architectural reasoning. The 1667 MHz clock, dual-core design, and 45 nm process combine to produce a processor that excels at low-power tasks but cannot compete with higher-clocked or more modern parts. The 50th percentile placement is likely skewed by the inclusion of many older or similarly weak processors in the database, as modern CPUs would rank significantly higher. The lack of L3 cache and the small 512 KB per-core L2 cache further limit performance in cache-sensitive workloads, while the 9 W TDP caps any potential for overclocking or sustained high-frequency operation.

In practical terms, the N570’s benchmark profile suggests it is adequate for basic productivity, web browsing, and light media playback, but it will bottleneck on demanding applications. The zero average score may also indicate that the processor was never subjected to rigorous benchmarking, or that its results were deemed too low to be meaningful. For a hardware analyst, the key takeaway is that the Atom N570 is a legacy part whose performance is defined by its power efficiency rather than its computational capability, and its 50th percentile ranking reflects a median position in a broad and diverse CPU landscape.