Home / Intel Core i5 / Intel Core i5-2300: Performance and Specs

Intel Core i5-2300

Intel Core i5-2300: Review and Relevance in 2025

Sandy Bridge Architecture and Its Legacy

The Intel Core i5-2300 processor, released in 2011, became part of the revolutionary Sandy Bridge generation. Despite its age, it is still found in budget PCs and second-hand systems. Let's analyze what this chip is capable of in 2025 and who might still find it useful.

Key Specifications: What's Under the Hood?

Architecture and Process Technology

- Sandy Bridge (32 nm) — the first generation of Intel with an integrated graphics core on the CPU die.

- 4 cores / 4 threads — lacks Hyper-Threading, limiting multitasking capabilities.

- Base frequency: 2.8 GHz, Turbo Boost up to 3.1 GHz — modest specs for modern tasks.

- TDP 95 W — requires active cooling, but consumes less power than competitors of its time (e.g., AMD Phenom II X4 965 with a TDP of 125 W).

- Integrated graphics Intel HD Graphics 2000 — only suitable for display output and basic tasks.

Performance

- Geekbench 6: 518 (Single-Core) / 1498 (Multi-Core) — on par with a modern budget smartphone. For comparison, Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 scores around 2000 points in multi-core.

- Real-world Performance:

- Office applications (Word, Excel) — run smoothly without delays.

- 4K video playback — possible through GPU decoding, but with stuttering.

- CS:GO at low settings — achieves 40-60 FPS when paired with a discrete graphics card like the GTX 1050.

Key Features

- Supports AES-NI — accelerating data encryption.

- Turbo Boost 2.0 technology — automatic overclocking under load.

- Compatibility with PCIe 2.0 — a limitation for modern NVMe SSDs (supported only through adapters).

Compatible Motherboards: What to Look for in 2025?

Socket LGA 1155 — outdated standard, no new motherboards are being produced.

Chipsets:

- H61 / B65 — basic models without overclocking or RAID support.

- H67 / P67 — expanded capabilities (e.g., overclocking via BCLK for P67).

- Z68 — top chipset with support for SSD caching (Smart Response technology).

Examples of Models (only the used market):

- ASUS P8H61-M LE — compact board for office builds (~$20-30).

- Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3 — an enthusiast option with RAID and overclocking support (~$40-50).

Important:

- BIOS updates may be unavailable due to discontinued support.

- Check the condition of capacitors on used boards — older models are prone to bulging.

Supported Memory: DDR3 and Its Limitations

- Type: DDR3 (incompatible with DDR4/DDR5).

- Max volume: 32 GB (depends on the motherboard).

- Frequencies: up to 1333 MHz (officially), but some boards allow overclocking to 1600 MHz.

Recommendations:

- Use 2 modules of 8 GB DDR3-1600 for dual-channel mode (~$30 for the set).

- Avoid cheap no-name modules — high risk of errors.

Power Supply: How Many Watts Are Needed?

- Minimum: 400 W (for a system without a discrete graphics card).

- With a graphics card: 450-500 W (for instance, for GTX 1650).

- Recommended Models:

- Corsair CX450 (450 W, 80+ Bronze, ~$55) — reliable and quiet operation.

- EVGA 500 BR (500 W, 80+ Bronze, ~$50) — budget option.

Tip: Don't skimp on the PSU — older processors are sensitive to voltage fluctuations.

Pros and Cons of i5-2300 in 2025

Pros:

- Price — a used processor costs $15-25.

- Reliability — Sandy Bridge chips are known for their long lifespan.

- Energy efficiency — better than the AMD FX series.

Cons:

- Outdated architecture — lacks support for AVX2, PCIe 3.0, USB 3.0 (available only through chipset).

- Weak multi-threading potential — 4 threads are insufficient for rendering or streaming.

- Limited upgrade options — maximum for LGA 1155: Core i7-3770K (4C/8T).

Use Cases: Where is i5-2300 Still Relevant?

1. Office PC:

- Document work, browsing (up to 10 tabs), Zoom.

- Example build: i5-2300 + 8 GB DDR3 + 240 GB SSD = ~$100.

2. Home Media Center:

- Streaming video (1080p), basic emulators (RetroArch).

- Connect an SSD and a GT 1030 GPU for HEVC decoding.

3. Entry-Level Server:

- NAS based on FreeNAS (supports ECC memory through Q67 chipsets).

Not Suitable For:

- Modern gaming (Cyberpunk 2077, Alan Wake 2).

- 4K video editing / 3D modeling.

Comparison with Competitors

1. AMD Phenom II X4 965:

- Similar performance, but TDP of 125 W and no integrated graphics.

- Used price: ~$10-15.

2. Intel Core i3-12100 (2025):

- 4C/8T, DDR5, PCIe 5.0.

- Geekbench 6: ~2200 (Single), ~8000 (Multi).

- New price: ~$120.

3. AMD Ryzen 3 5300G:

- 4C/8T, integrated Vega 6 graphics.

- Geekbench 6: ~1800 (Single), ~6500 (Multi).

- New price: ~$100.

Conclusion: The i5-2300 falls behind even budget newcomers but is useful as a temporary solution.

Building Tips

1. SSD is mandatory — Kingston A400 240 GB (~$25) will eliminate HDD "lag".

2. Add a graphics card — even a used GTX 1050 Ti (~$50) will improve gaming performance.

3. Check cooling — standard coolers are noisy; replace with Deepcool GAMMAXX 400 (~$20).

4. Update BIOS — to support newer processors (like the i7-2600).

In Summary: Who is i5-2300 Suitable for in 2025?

This processor should only be considered in three cases:

1. Ultra-budget builds — if you have access to free components.

2. Upgrading an old PC — replacing a Pentium G series for a light boost.

3. Experimentation — learning to build PCs without the risk of damaging expensive components.

Alternative: If the budget allows $100-150, opt for newer CPUs (Intel Core i3-12100F, AMD Ryzen 3 5300G) — they will provide 3-5 times more performance and support modern technologies.

The Intel Core i5-2300 is an example of a "workhorse" that has served its time but can still be beneficial in niche scenarios. However, for most users in 2025, it is already a thing of the past.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Desktop

Launch Date

January 2011

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.

i5-2300

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

2.80 GHz

Max Turbo Frequency

Max Turbo Frequency is the maximum single-core frequency at which the processor is capable of operating using Intel® Turbo Boost Technology and, if present, Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 and Intel® Thermal Velocity Boost. Frequency is typically measured in gigahertz (GHz), or billion cycles per second.

3.10 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 Frequency

3.10 GHz

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.

2.0

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.

CPU Socket

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

LGA1155

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

95 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

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.

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

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

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.

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).

21 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 2000

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.

1.10 GHz

Number of Displays Supported

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 | Intel® AVX

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.

6 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.

Yes

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.

Yes

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

Yes

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.

Yes

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6

Single Core Score

518

Geekbench 6

Multi Core Score

1498

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

621

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

2078

Passmark CPU

Single Core Score

1428

Passmark CPU

Multi Core Score

3420

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core

Core M-5Y10c

593 +14.5%

A6-6420K

558 +7.7%

Core i5-2300

518

Athlon X4 870K

483 -6.8%

Core i5-2430M

446 -13.9%

Geekbench 6 Multi Core

Pentium Gold G6400E

1791 +19.6%

FX-8120

1637 +9.3%

Core i5-2300

1498

PRO A12-9800

1331 -11.1%

A10 PRO-7850B

1171 -21.8%

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Core i5-6442EQ

668 +7.6%

Core i3-L13G4

646 +4%

Core i5-2300

621

Core i7-3612QM

599 -3.5%

Ryzen Embedded R1102G

579 -6.8%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Core i5-6350HQ

2402 +15.6%

Xeon E5-2690 v3

2234 +7.5%

Core i5-2300

2078

Core i5-3330

1945 -6.4%

Xeon E3-1558L v5

1822 -12.3%

Passmark CPU Single Core

Xeon Gold 6262V

1486 +4.1%

FX-8370E

1461 +2.3%

Core i5-2300

1428

Pentium G860

1397 -2.2%

EPYC 7301

1363 -4.6%

Passmark CPU Multi Core

Core i7-7560U

3773 +10.3%

Pentium Gold G6400T

3588 +4.9%

Core i5-2300

3420

Core i3-6167U

3255 -4.8%

Pentium Silver J5005

3080 -9.9%