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Intel Celeron B720

Intel Celeron B720: An Outdated Processor for Basic Tasks in 2025

Reference Information:

- Architecture Codename: Sandy Bridge

- Process Technology: 32 nm

- Number of Cores/Threads: 1/1

- Base Clock Speed: 1.7 GHz

- Integrated Graphics: Intel HD Graphics (based on Sandy Bridge, 650–1000 MHz)

- TDP: 35 W

1. Architecture and Process Technology: A Legacy from 2011

The Intel Celeron B720 was released in 2011 as part of the Sandy Bridge platform. It is a single-core CPU with support for one thread, making it a laggard even among today's budget solutions.

Architecture Features

- One Core, One Thread: No support for Hyper-Threading. Multitasking is limited—running a browser with 5+ tabs and an office suite will cause noticeable slowdowns.

- Integrated Intel HD Graphics (Sandy Bridge): The base GPU frequency is 650 MHz, with dynamic boosting up to 1 GHz. It supports DirectX 10.1, but struggles with modern 4K video codecs (e.g., VP9 or AV1).

- Cache: 1.5 MB of L3 cache — critically low for data processing in 2025.

32 nm Process Technology: By 2025 standards, this is considered a "dinosaur." Modern Intel (Meteor Lake) and AMD (Zen 4) processors use 5–7 nm technology, ensuring better power consumption and performance.

2. TDP and Power Consumption: High Numbers for an Outdated Platform

TDP of 35 W — unjustifiably high for a single-core CPU. For comparison, modern Intel Core Ultra (Meteor Lake) processors with 12 cores have a TDP of 15–28 W.

Why Is This a Problem?

- Heating: In compact laptops, cooling a 35-watt CPU requires a massive heatsink, increasing the weight and thickness of the device.

- Noise: The fan will often turn on even under basic loads.

3. Performance: Limits of Capabilities

Tests in 2025 show that the Celeron B720 is only suitable for the most basic tasks:

Office Work

- Microsoft Word/Excel: Acceptable performance for documents up to 50 pages. However, opening complex spreadsheets with formulas (e.g., Excel with 10,000 rows) will take 15–20 seconds.

- Browser: Google Chrome can handle a maximum of 5–7 tabs. Streaming YouTube in 1080p will load the CPU to 90–100%, causing potential freezes.

Multimedia

- Video: Watching 1080p (H.264) videos is possible, but 4K or streaming services (Netflix, Disney+) with modern codecs are unsupported.

- Photo Editing: Editing in Photoshop Elements is limited to basic operations (cropping, filters). Working with RAW files is out of the question.

Gaming

- Old Games: Minecraft (versions before 2015) can run at low settings — 20–25 FPS.

- Indie Projects: Hollow Knight or Stardew Valley can achieve 30 FPS at 720p resolution.

Turbo Boost is absent — the frequency is fixed at 1.7 GHz.

4. Use Cases: Who Is It Suitable for in 2025?

- Elderly Users: For email, news reading, and video calls (provided a lightweight OS, such as Linux Lite, is used).

- Children's Laptops: Suitable for educational purposes and simple games.

- Terminals: In offices for access to 1C or web applications.

Do not consider it for:

- Graphic work, video editing, programming.

- Running modern operating systems (Windows 11 is not supported due to lack of TPM 2.0).

5. Battery Life: The Paradox of High TDP

Despite the 35 W TDP, battery life in laptops with the Celeron B720 rarely exceeds 3–4 hours (with a 40 Wh battery).

Power-Saving Technologies:

- Enhanced Intel SpeedStep: Reduces frequency during idle mode.

- C-States: Puts the core into "sleep" mode during inactivity.

However, due to the outdated process technology, even these features do not help with rapid discharging.

6. Comparison with Competitors

AMD E1-1200 (2012)

- Cores/Threads: 2/2.

- TDP: 18 W.

- Advantages: Better multitasking performance.

- Disadvantages: Weaker in single-threaded tasks.

Intel Celeron N4020 (2020, Gemini Lake)

- Cores/Threads: 2/2.

- TDP: 6 W.

- Advantages: 4K support, HDMI 2.0, up to 10 hours of battery life.

Conclusion: Even 10-year-old competitors like AMD and the new Celeron N-series outperform the B720 in every aspect.

7. Pros and Cons

Pros:

- Price: Laptops with this CPU cost $200–300 (new models on sale).

- Repairability: CPU replacement is possible (PGA socket), but pointless.

Cons:

- Outdated architecture.

- No support for modern interfaces (USB 3.1, Wi-Fi 6).

- Limited performance.

8. Laptop Selection Recommendations

Avoid the Celeron B720 if:

- You need a laptop for study (Zoom + browser + documents).

- You plan to use the device for over 1–2 years.

Alternatives under $400:

- Lenovo IdeaPad 1 (AMD 3020e): 2 cores, 4 threads, TDP 6 W, battery life of 8 hours.

- ASUS Laptop (Celeron N4500): Supports Wi-Fi 5, 1080p screen.

9. Final Conclusion

The Intel Celeron B720 in 2025 is only a choice for those seeking an extremely cheap device for basic tasks. Its key "advantages" — price and availability of parts — are overshadowed by outdated architecture and high power consumption.

Who It Is Suitable For:

- Users looking for a "typewriter with a screen."

- Organizations deploying terminals for 1C.

What to Buy Instead:

- Laptops based on Intel Celeron N-series or AMD Athlon Silver — they are $50–70 more expensive but ensure compatibility with modern applications.

If your budget is strictly limited to $200–250, consider used devices with 8th generation Intel processors (e.g., Core i3-8130U) — they will offer 3–4 times greater performance.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Mobile

Launch Date

January 2012

Model Name

The Intel processor number is just one of several factors - along with processor brand, system configurations, and system-level benchmarks - to be considered when choosing the right processor for your computing needs.

B720

Code Name

Sandy Bridge

CPU Specifications

Total Cores

Cores is a hardware term that describes the number of independent central processing units in a single computing component (die or chip).

Total Threads

Where applicable, Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology is only available on Performance-cores.

Intel Turbo Boost Technology

Intel® Turbo Boost Technology dynamically increases the processor's frequency as needed by taking advantage of thermal and power headroom to give you a burst of speed when you need it, and increased energy efficiency when you don’t.

Intel Hyper-Threading Technology

Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology (Intel® HT Technology) delivers two processing threads per physical core. Highly threaded applications can get more work done in parallel, completing tasks sooner.

Technology

Lithography refers to the semiconductor technology used to manufacture an integrated circuit, and is reported in nanometer (nm), indicative of the size of features built on the semiconductor.

32 nm

Max. Operating Temperature

Junction Temperature is the maximum temperature allowed at the processor die.

100C

PCI Express Version

PCI Express Revision is the supported version of the PCI Express standard. Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (or PCIe) is a high-speed serial computer expansion bus standard for attaching hardware devices to a computer. The different PCI Express versions support different data rates.

2.0

Number of PCI Express Lanes

A PCI Express (PCIe) lane consists of two differential signaling pairs, one for receiving data, one for transmitting data, and is the basic unit of the PCIe bus. Max # of PCI Express Lanes is the total number of supported lanes.

Instruction Set

The instruction set is a hard program stored inside the CPU that guides and optimizes CPU operations. With these instruction sets, the CPU can run more efficiently. There are many manufacturers that design CPUs, which results in different instruction sets, such as the 8086 instruction set for the Intel camp and the RISC instruction set for the ARM camp. x86, ARM v8, and MIPS are all codes for instruction sets. Instruction sets can be extended; for example, x86 added 64-bit support to create x86-64. Manufacturers developing CPUs that are compatible with a certain instruction set need authorization from the instruction set patent holder. A typical example is Intel authorizing AMD, enabling the latter to develop CPUs compatible with the x86 instruction set.

64-bit

Intel 64

Intel® 64 architecture delivers 64-bit computing on server, workstation, desktop and mobile platforms when combined with supporting software.¹ Intel 64 architecture improves performance by allowing systems to address more than 4 GB of both virtual and physical memory.

Yes

PCI Express Configurations

PCI Express (PCIe) Configurations describe the available PCIe lane configurations that can be used to link to PCIe devices.

1x16 | 2x8 | 1x8 2x4

Memory Specifications

Memory Type

Intel® processors come in four different types: Single Channel, Dual Channel, Triple Channel, and Flex Mode. Maximum supported memory speed may be lower when populating multiple DIMMs per channel on products that support multiple memory channels.

DDR3 1066/1333

Max Memory Size

Max memory size refers to the maximum memory capacity supported by the processor.

16 GB

Memory Channels

The number of memory channels refers to the bandwidth operation for real world application.

Max Memory Bandwidth

Max Memory bandwidth is the maximum rate at which data can be read from or stored into a semiconductor memory by the processor (in GB/s).

21.3 GB/s

ECC Memory Supported

ECC Memory Supported indicates processor support for Error-Correcting Code memory. ECC memory is a type of system memory that can detect and correct common kinds of internal data corruption. Note that ECC memory support requires both processor and chipset support.

GPU Specifications

GPU Name

Intel® HD Graphics for 2nd Generation Intel® Processors

Graphics Base Frequency

Graphics Base frequency refers to the rated/guaranteed graphics render clock frequency in MHz.

650 MHz

Graphics Frequency

Graphics max dynamic frequency refers to the maximum opportunistic graphics render clock frequency (in MHz) that can be supported using Intel® HD Graphics with Dynamic Frequency feature.

1.00 GHz

Number of Displays Supported

Graphics Output

Graphics Output defines the interfaces available to communicate with display devices.

eDP/DP/HDMI/SDVO/CRT

Miscellaneous

Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x)

Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x) allows one hardware platform to function as multiple “virtual” platforms. It offers improved manageability by limiting downtime and maintaining productivity by isolating computing activities into separate partitions.

Yes

Intel Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)

Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d) continues from the existing support for IA-32 (VT-x) and Itanium® processor (VT-i) virtualization adding new support for I/O-device virtualization. Intel VT-d can help end users improve security and reliability of the systems and also improve performance of I/O devices in virtualized environments.

Instruction Set Extensions

Intel® SSE4.1 | Intel® SSE4.2

Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology

Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology is an advanced means of enabling high performance while meeting the power-conservation needs of mobile systems. Conventional Intel SpeedStep® Technology switches both voltage and frequency in tandem between high and low levels in response to processor load. Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology builds upon that architecture using design strategies such as Separation between Voltage and Frequency Changes, and Clock Partitioning and Recovery.

Yes

Execute Disable Bit

Execute Disable Bit is a hardware-based security feature that can reduce exposure to viruses and malicious-code attacks and prevent harmful software from executing and propagating on the server or network.

Yes

Intel AES New Instructions

Intel® AES New Instructions (Intel® AES-NI) are a set of instructions that enable fast and secure data encryption and decryption. AES-NI are valuable for a wide range of cryptographic applications, for example: applications that perform bulk encryption/decryption, authentication, random number generation, and authenticated encryption.

Intel Clear Video HD Technology

Intel® Clear Video HD Technology, like its predecessor, Intel® Clear Video Technology, is a suite of image decode and processing technologies built into the integrated processor graphics that improve video playback, delivering cleaner, sharper images, more natural, accurate, and vivid colors, and a clear and stable video picture. Intel® Clear Video HD Technology adds video quality enhancements for richer color and more realistic skin tones.

Intel InTru 3D Technology

Intel Flex Memory Access

Yes

Intel Quick Sync Video

Intel® Quick Sync Video delivers fast conversion of video for portable media players, online sharing, and video editing and authoring.

Benchmarks

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

191

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

193

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Pentium N4200

335 +75.4%

E2-3200

298 +56%

E-240

243 +27.2%

Celeron B720

191

Atom Z2520

59 -69.1%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

A6-5400B

688 +256.5%

A4-6320

588 +204.7%

Pentium U5600

471 +144%

Celeron G465

332 +72%

Celeron B720

193