Intel Core i5-2410M

The Intel Core i5-2410M is a mobile processor from Intel’s Sandy Bridge architecture, released on 2011-01-31 and now marked end-of-life. It is built on Intel’s 32 nm process with 624 million transistors and a 149 mm² die, and it combines 2 cores and 4 threads with a 2.30 GHz base clock. Its average benchmark score is 589, and it sits at the 13th percentile of all CPUs in the database, meaning it outperforms 13% of the CPUs tracked.

Benchmark Performance

Benchmark results place the i5-2410M in a very narrow competitive window. Its average score of 589 is identical in practical terms to the AMD Phenom II X4 905e’s 589, 0.1% ahead; it is also 0.2% ahead of the AMD A10-5757M’s 588. It trails the Intel Core i5-655K and the Intel Core i5-2415M by 0.1%, since both of those CPUs average 590. None of these deltas is large enough to create a real winner; the four nearest rivals are effectively interchangeable with the i5-2410M in aggregate performance.

In threaded workloads, the processor posts 166 in Cinebench R15 multicore, 695 in Cinebench R20 multicore, 1655 in Cinebench R23 multicore, and 847 in Geekbench multicore. Single-thread results are considerably lower: 97 in Cinebench R20 single-core, 233 in Cinebench R23 single-core, and 430 in Geekbench single-core. The 13th percentile placement confirms that, despite the tight cluster of rivals around 589, the rest of the CPU field is generally far faster. This is a bottom-tier result by modern standards, but the benchmark pattern is internally consistent: the i5-2410M offers only modest throughput, with the multi-core scores showing the benefit of its two-core, four-thread design.

Power and Thermals

The i5-2410M carries a 35 W TDP. For a 32 nm mobile chip with two cores and integrated Intel HD 3000 graphics, that power envelope puts it in the mainstream mobile class rather than an ultra-low-power category. A 35 W TDP implies the cooling solution can be a conventional laptop heatpipe-and-fan design; it does not require the heavy cooling of a desktop-class part, nor does it fit into the passive-cooling tier used by very low power mobile processors. The market segment is Mobile, and the production status is end-of-life, so thermal validation is mainly relevant to existing laptops or socket-compatible replacements in the same system class.

How It Compares

AMD Phenom II X4 905e: The i5-2410M is effectively tied with the Phenom II X4 905e, matching its 589 average score and leading by 0.1%. The data shows no aggregate performance winner; any difference in specific workloads would come from architecture-level behavior rather than raw speed.

Intel Core i5-655K: The Core i5-655K averages 590, putting the i5-2410M 0.1% behind. This is a nominal gap, and the two processors should deliver equivalent overall throughput in most tasks. The i5-2410M’s mobile positioning does not change the benchmark outcome.

Intel Core i5-2415M: The sibling mobile part i5-2415M also averages 590, leaving the i5-2410M 0.1% behind. Since both are mobile Sandy Bridge processors with the same benchmark profile, the two can be treated as the same performance class in practical terms.

AMD A10-5757M: The A10-5757M averages 588, with the i5-2410M ahead by 0.2%. This is the largest delta among the four nearest rivals, but it is still small enough that the two CPUs occupy the same performance tier in aggregate scores.

Who Should Consider It

The benchmark profile points to light, latency-tolerant workloads. Office tasks such as word processing, email, and web browsing align with what a 2.30 GHz dual-core processor with four threads can deliver; the R23 single-core score of 233 and Geekbench single-core score of 430 indicate enough capability for basic interactive use. For CPU-heavy content creation, the picture is much weaker: Cinebench R23 multicore at 1655 and Cinebench R20 multicore at 695 show that long render or encoding jobs will be slow, making the i5-2410M a poor fit for sustained multi-threaded creation work. Gaming is also constrained, since modern 3D titles typically depend on strong single-thread performance; the Geekbench single-core 430 and the integrated Intel HD 3000 GPU leave little headroom for demanding games. Because the processor is end-of-life, it is best seen as a part for maintaining legacy mobile systems rather than for new high-performance builds.

FAQ

Q: What socket does the Intel Core i5-2410M use?

A: It uses Intel Socket G2 (988B).

Q: Does it support ECC memory?

A: No, ECC memory is not supported.

Q: What are the cache sizes?

A: It has 64 KB of L1 cache per core, 256 KB of L2 cache per core, and 3 MB of shared L3 cache.

Q: What is the TDP?

A: The TDP is 35 W.

Q: Is the multiplier unlocked?

A: No, the multiplier is locked.

Q: What integrated graphics does it include?

A: It includes Intel HD 3000.

Single-Thread vs Multi-Thread Behavior

The split between single-core and multi-core scores reveals how the i5-2410M handles different workload shapes. In Cinebench R20, multicore is 695 and single-core is 97; in Cinebench R23, multicore is 1655 and single-core is 233; in Geekbench, multicore is 847 and single-core is 430. In all three tests, the multi-core result is only a modest multiple of the single-core result, which fits a design with two physical cores and four threads. The absolute single-thread scores are low, so applications that rely on one thread will see limited responsiveness. Multi-threaded tasks gain from having four threads feed the two cores, but the absolute multi-core results remain low enough that heavy parallel workloads still lack the compute headroom found in faster modern processors. In practical terms, this is a chip that can handle parallel light tasks acceptably but does not have the single-thread punch for demanding per-core applications.

Platform and Compatibility

The i5-2410M is built for Intel Socket G2 (988B), the mobile socket used by Sandy Bridge generation parts. Memory support is DDR3 over a dual-channel interface, and ECC memory is not supported. The processor includes integrated Intel HD 3000 graphics, enabling basic display output without a discrete GPU. The multiplier is locked, so the CPU itself does not allow clock adjustment. The production status is end-of-life, and the release date is 2011-01-31, which narrows the upgrade path to other Socket G2 processors from the same architecture generation. The fact pack does not list PCIe lane details, so expansion capabilities beyond the integrated graphics and memory interface are not characterized by the available data.