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Intel Celeron G555

Intel Celeron G555: A Budget Solution for Basic Tasks in 2025

(Sandy Bridge, 32 nm, 2 cores, 65 W)

1. Key Specifications: Architecture and Performance

The Intel Celeron G555, released in 2012, belongs to the Sandy Bridge family. Despite its age, it remains relevant in budget builds due to its low cost and moderate energy efficiency.

Architecture and Technology Process

- Cores and Threads: 2 cores, 2 threads.

- Base Clock Frequency: 2.7 GHz (without Turbo Boost).

- Technology Process: 32 nm.

- Cache: 2 MB L3.

- Integrated Graphics: Intel HD Graphics (basic version, 650–1050 MHz).

Performance in Geekbench 6 (2025 test):

- Single-Core: 398 points.

- Multi-Core: 742 points.

Key Features:

- Support for SSE4.1/4.2, AES-NI instructions.

- Virtualization (VT-x).

- TDP of 65 W — suitable for compact cases.

Limitations:

- No AVX support, PCIe 3.0, DDR4/DDR5.

- Maximum memory support — 32 GB.

2. Compatible Motherboards

The Celeron G555 uses the LGA 1155 socket, which limits the choice of motherboards to outdated models.

Chipsets

- H61/B65: Budget boards without overclocking (price: $50–80). Examples: ASUS P8H61-M LE, Gigabyte GA-H61M-S1.

- H67/Q67: Support for SATA III and RAID (price: $70–100). Example: ASRock H67M.

Selection Features in 2025:

- New motherboards are no longer produced — look for stock leftovers or verified used options.

- Ensure the presence of BIOS updates for compatibility with Windows 11 (requires TPM 2.0, which is absent in most LGA 1155 boards).

3. Supported Memory

- Type: DDR3-1066/1333 MHz.

- Modes: Single-channel or dual-channel.

Recommendations:

- 8 GB (2×4 GB) is sufficient for office tasks.

- For multimedia, aim for 16 GB (2×8 GB).

Important:

- Modern DDR4/DDR5 are not supported — this is the main limitation for upgrades.

4. Power Supply: Calculation and Recommendations

With a TDP of 65 W, the processor does not require a powerful PSU.

Scenarios:

- Without a dedicated graphics card: A PSU of 300–400 W is sufficient (e.g., EVGA 400 W1, $35).

- With a graphics card like NVIDIA GT 1030: Choose a PSU of 450–500 W (Corsair CV450, $45).

Advice: Do not skimp on the PSU — cheap models may operate unstably even with low power consumption.

5. Pros and Cons of the Celeron G555

Pros:

- Price: $25–40 (new units available in stock in 2025).

- Low heat output — suitable for passive cooling.

- Sufficient for basic tasks: browsing, office work, HD video.

Cons:

- Outdated architecture — 60% behind in single-core performance compared to Pentium Gold G7400 (2023).

- No support for NVMe, USB 3.1, Wi-Fi 6.

- Limited upgrade potential: replacing the processor will require changing platforms.

6. Use Cases

Office and Study

- Working with documents, Zoom, browsing (10+ tabs).

- Example: PC for a student — Celeron G555 + 8 GB DDR3 + 240 GB SSD.

Multimedia

- Viewing videos in 1080p (YouTube, Netflix).

- Issue: 4K videos will stutter due to weak graphics.

Gaming

- Older titles: CS:GO on low settings (30–40 FPS), Minecraft.

- Tip: Add a GPU like GTX 750 Ti (used, $30).

7. Comparison with Competitors

AMD A4-5300 (2012)

- Pros: Better graphics (Radeon HD 7480D).

- Cons: Lower CPU performance (Geekbench 6 Single-Core: ~320).

- Price: $20–30.

Intel Pentium G6400 (2020)

- Pros: 2 cores/4 threads, support for DDR4.

- Cons: Price $70 — twice as expensive.

Conclusion: The Celeron G555 only wins on price, but loses in upgrade prospects.

8. Build Tips

- SSD is essential: Kingston A400 240 GB ($25) will eliminate system "lag."

- Ventilated case: Deepcool MATREXX 30 ($40).

- OS: Windows 10 LTSC or Linux (Ubuntu Lite). Windows 11 is not recommended due to TPM requirements.

Sample build for $150:

- CPU: Celeron G555 ($35).

- Motherboard: ASUS H61 ($60).

- Memory: 8 GB DDR3 ($20).

- Storage: 240 GB SSD ($25).

- PSU: EVGA 400W ($35).

9. Final Conclusion: Who Should Choose the Celeron G555?

This processor is ideal if:

- You need an extremely budget PC for office work, study, or surfing.

- You require minimal power consumption (e.g., for an HTPC).

- You do not plan to run modern applications or games.

Alternative: Consider used business PCs (Dell OptiPlex 3010) for $100–120 — they often come with Windows 10 Pro and a license.

The Celeron G555 in 2025 is a "workhorse" for undemanding tasks, but no more. For future upgrades, it's better to choose a platform with LGA 1200 or AM4 from the start.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Desktop

Launch Date

July 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.

G555

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.

Basic Frequency

2.70 GHz

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.

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.

CPU Socket

The socket is the component that provides the mechanical and electrical connections between the processor and motherboard.

FCLGA1155

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

TDP

65 W

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

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

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

Max Memory Size

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

32 GB

Memory Channels

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

Bus Speed

5 GT/s

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).

17 GB/s

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.

850 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

Miscellaneous

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.

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

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

Cache

CPU Cache is an area of fast memory located on the processor. Intel® Smart Cache refers to the architecture that allows all cores to dynamically share access to the last level cache.

2 MB Intel® Smart Cache

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 VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)

Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT), also known as Second Level Address Translation (SLAT), provides acceleration for memory intensive virtualized applications. Extended Page Tables in Intel® Virtualization Technology platforms reduces the memory and power overhead costs and increases battery life through hardware optimization of page table management.

Yes

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 6

Single Core Score

398

Geekbench 6

Multi Core Score

742

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

517

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

984

Passmark CPU

Single Core Score

1289

Passmark CPU

Multi Core Score

1388

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core

Pentium G640

467 +17.3%

Opteron 4386

430 +8%

Celeron G555

398

Celeron N4020

368 -7.5%

Celeron B840

322 -19.1%

Geekbench 6 Multi Core

Core i3-3220T

973 +31.1%

A8-3800

890 +19.9%

Celeron G555

742

A6 PRO-7400B

645 -13.1%

A4-3400

536 -27.8%

Geekbench 5 Single Core

PRO A8-8650B

551 +6.6%

PRO A12-9800

531 +2.7%

Celeron G555

517

PRO A6-8570

502 -2.9%

Phenom II X4 980 BE

488 -5.6%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Athlon X4 750

1143 +16.2%

Core M-5Y51

1068 +8.5%

Celeron G555

984

Celeron J4025

888 -9.8%

A6-3420M

831 -15.5%

Passmark CPU Single Core

Xeon E5-2420 v2

1382 +7.2%

Core m7-6Y75

1339 +3.9%

Celeron G555

1289

Xeon E5-2448L

1235 -4.2%

Core i5-2510E

1183 -8.2%

Passmark CPU Multi Core

Pentium G2100T

1691 +21.8%

A4 PRO-7350B

1544 +11.2%

Celeron G555

1388

Core i3-2348M

1268 -8.6%

E2-3800

1139 -17.9%