intel - Difference Between Cores and Processors

07
2014-07
  • Graviton

    I am confused by the difference between "Cores" and "Processors". A lot of the computers are 2-cores, 4-cores. Does this mean that they have one processor, but with 2 or 4 cores on that single processor?

    Also, for intel core i5, it seems that there are 4 CPUs in the task manager, are they referring to 4 core on a processors, or 4 processors with one core each, or 2 cores on 2 processors?

    • Answers
  • DMA57361

    Yes, a multi-core processor is a single piece of hardware ("one processor") that provides several cores than can work concurrently.

    The i5 is a single processor that provides either 2 or 4 physical cores depending on model (see here).

    Note that some Intel processors (the i5 included) use hyperthreading, a system where a single processor has (for example) 2 pyhsical cores, but will provide 4 logical cores - allowing the operating system to treat the processor as having more cores than it really does.

  • Cerin

    Yes, a "core" is just a processor that's placed on to the same integrated circuit with other processors. See the Wikipedia article for further info on multi-core processors.


    • Related Question

    cpu - Is there a difference between AMD and Intel processors?
  • user15259

    I am about to upgrade my dell machine and will getting a custom pc built soon.

    There are two options that I see in my budget for the processor:

    1. AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition - Quad Core, AM2+/AM3, 3,4GHz, 8MB, Boxed
    2. Intel Core™ i5 Quad Processor i5-750 - 2,66GHz, Socket LGA1156, 8MB, Boxed m/fläkt

    I will be using the PC for graphic editing, web design and some gaming. The OS I will be using is windows 7.

    Which one is better for my purposes? and is there a difference between AMD and Intel, Will AMD support all of my drivers, programs etc?

    Sorry for the noob question.


    • Related Answers
  • John T

    You haven't made any indication of the operating system, but the programs should be compatible if they are made for the OS. The 2 processors are identical except the AMD has a higher clock speed to start with. Although I'd still opt for the i5 due to it's turbo feature.

    Some benchmarks here.

  • BrianW

    I don't mean this sarcastically, but if you don't know the difference, you will probably never notice it. Compatibility is a non-issue.

    According to reviews, the performance is very comparable between the two. Ignore answers about clock speed, it is not a relevant fact. You did mention graphic editing. In the linked benchmarks, the Intel i5 does noticeably better in that task.

    Tech Report Benchmarks

  • schnaader

    You (most likely) won't get compatibility issues with an AMD processor. As you can see, AMD provides a higher clock speed for the same or lower price.

    An advantage of the Intel processor is that it supports Turbo Boost which will overclock the processor on the fly if only one or two cores are used.

  • ianfuture

    Interestingly , and granted this is an older AMD CPU (Athlon XP)than those mentioned, but some applications don't seem to like AMD comapared to Intel if they are particularly processer intensive. My PC will not run BOINC on 32 bit AMD, but an older P3 Intel is fine. Additionaly my work PC AMD X2 64 also does not like BOINC, wont even install it. So while in theory there should not be any noticeable different some CPU intensive applications written for/on Intel architecture may not work 100% correctly on AMD in a Windows operating system.