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Intel Core i5-2400S

Intel Core i5-2400S: Retro Processor for Budget Tasks in 2025

Overview of the capabilities and relevance of a 2011 processor in modern conditions

Key Specifications: Sandy Bridge in Detail

The Intel Core i5-2400S, released in 2011, became part of the revolutionary Sandy Bridge lineup. Despite its age, it maintains niche popularity due to its low TDP and reliability.

Architecture and Technology Process

- 32 nm Technology: In 2025, this is an outdated standard (modern processors use 5–7 nm), but it's sufficient for basic tasks.

- 4 Cores / 4 Threads: The lack of Hyper-Threading limits multitasking, but it's adequate for office PCs or media centers.

- Base Frequency 2.5 GHz, Turbo Boost up to 3.3 GHz: The speed is enough for light applications, but not for modern gaming or rendering.

- Integrated Graphics Intel HD Graphics 2000: Supports DirectX 10.1 and resolutions up to 2560x1600, but it's weak for 4K video or streaming.

Performance

- Geekbench 6: Single-Core — 557, Multi-Core — 1433. For comparison, the Ryzen 3 5300G (2023) scores ~1500/4500.

- TDP 65 W: Energy efficiency is the main advantage. Even in 2025, it's one of the "coolest" CPUs for undemanding builds.

Key Features

- Support for AVX instructions, which is rare for CPUs of that generation.

- Turbo Boost 2.0 technology for temporary speed increases.

- Virtualization (VT-x) — useful for creating lightweight virtual machines.

Compatible Motherboards: What to Look for in 2025

The processor uses the LGA 1155 socket, which has long been discontinued. New boards are not available, but some models can be found on the secondary market:

- Chipsets: H61 (budget), H67/P67 (memory overclocking), Z68 (SSD optimization).

- Examples of Models: ASUS P8H67-M, Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3.

- Selection Features:

- Check for SATA III (6 Gbps) support — important for SSDs.

- Availability of USB 3.0 (rare for boards from 2011-2012).

- BIOS update: some boards require an update to work with i5-2400S.

Tip: Look for boards with a warranty or those that have been tested by the seller. Prices on the secondary market range from $20 to $40.

Supported Memory: Only DDR3

- Type: DDR3-1066/1333 MHz. No compatibility with DDR4/DDR5.

- Maximum Capacity: 32 GB (theoretically), but practically due to chipset limitations — 16–24 GB.

- Recommendations:

- Use dual-channel mode (2x4 GB or 2x8 GB) to improve performance.

- Avoid modules with a frequency higher than 1600 MHz — boards may not recognize them.

Power Supply: Modest Requirements

With a TDP of 65 W, the i5-2400S does not require a powerful PSU:

- Without a discrete graphics card: A power supply of 300-400 W is sufficient (e.g., EVGA 400 N1, $35).

- With a graphics card: For a GTX 1650 (TDP 75 W), a 450 W supply is enough (Corsair CX450, $55).

- Important: Choose a PSU with an 80+ Bronze certification and overload protection.

Pros and Cons: Who Is It Suitable For in 2025?

Pros:

- Low power consumption and heat generation.

- Affordability (secondary market price — $15–25).

- Reliability: many units last 10+ years.

Cons:

- No support for PCIe 3.0/4.0, USB 3.1, NVMe (only via adapters).

- Weak IPC (Instructions Per Cycle) by modern standards.

- Limited upgrade options: maximum is the Core i7-2600K.

Use Cases: Where the CPU Is Relevant

1. Office PCs: Working with documents, browsers, Zoom.

2. Media Centers: Viewing Full HD video, streaming via Plex.

3. Light Gaming: Minecraft, Dota 2 on low settings (with a GPU like the GT 1030).

4. Home Server: NAS or router based on Proxmox/OpenMediaVault.

Real Example: A user on Reddit built a media center using an i5-2400S + 8 GB DDR3 + 240 GB SSD for $70, running Ubuntu + Kodi.

Comparison with Competitors

- AMD Phenom II X4 965: Cheaper ($10–15), but higher TDP (125 W), worse IPC.

- Intel Core i3-10100 (2020): 2-3 times faster but priced at $80–100 (new).

- Ryzen 3 3200G (2019): Supports DDR4, Vega 8 GPU, priced at $90 (used).

Conclusion: The i5-2400S lags behind modern CPUs but wins in affordability and energy efficiency.

Building Tips

1. SSD is a Must: Kingston A400 240 GB ($25) will speed up the system.

2. Cooling: The stock cooler is sufficient, but for quieter operation, consider the Deepcool GAMMAXX 400 ($20).

3. OS: Windows 10/11 (with limitations) or a lightweight Linux (Lubuntu).

4. Upgrade: Add a GTX 1050 Ti level GPU for gaming, but check compatibility with the PSU.

Final Conclusion: Who Is the i5-2400S Suitable For in 2025?

This processor is a choice for:

- Budget build enthusiasts: It's possible to build a PC for $100–150.

- Owners of old systems: Upgrade without replacing the motherboard.

- Retro hardware fans: Experimenting with operating systems and software from the 2010s.

Why it’s a good choice: Affordability, proven reliability, and minimal cooling requirements. However, for serious tasks (video editing, modern gaming), it’s better to invest an additional $50–100 to get a Ryzen 3 or a 10th generation Core i3.

In 2025, the Intel Core i5-2400S remains an example of "surviving" hardware, proving that even outdated technology can be useful in niche scenarios.

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.

i5-2400S

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

2.50 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.

3.30 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 Frequency

3.30 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

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

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.

Yes

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

557

Geekbench 6

Multi Core Score

1433

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

610

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

1738

Passmark CPU

Single Core Score

1468

Passmark CPU

Multi Core Score

3156

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core

A12-9800

635 +14%

Xeon E5-2609 v4

593 +6.5%

Core i5-2400S

557

Core i7-2620M

516 -7.4%

Core i3-2105

482 -13.5%

Geekbench 6 Multi Core

FX-8320E

1734 +21%

Core i5-5300U

1573 +9.8%

Core i5-2400S

1433

Core i3-10110Y

1252 -12.6%

Core i5-3340M

1113 -22.3%

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Core i5-2540M

656 +7.5%

Core i5-2320

632 +3.6%

Core i5-2400S

610

Xeon E5-4620 v4

587 -3.8%

Xeon X5660

567 -7%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Xeon E5606

2014 +15.9%

Xeon E5-2407 v2

1888 +8.6%

Core i5-2400S

1738

Pentium Gold G5420T

1630 -6.2%

Core i3-6100T

1534 -11.7%

Passmark CPU Single Core

Core i5-2320

1523 +3.7%

PRO A8-8650B

1489 +1.4%

Core i5-2400S

1468

Core i7-3537U

1434 -2.3%

Xeon E5-2665

1401 -4.6%

Passmark CPU Multi Core

Core i3-4350

3501 +10.9%

Celeron N5100

3306 +4.8%

Core i5-2400S

3156

Core i7-5650U

3017 -4.4%

Core i7-5550U

2864 -9.3%