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Intel Core i7-5550U

Intel Core i7-5550U: Review of the Ultraportable Processor from 2015 in the Realities of 2025

Relevance, Performance, and Use Cases for Budget Devices

Introduction

In 2025, technology has advanced significantly, yet budget laptops based on 10-year-old processors like the Intel Core i7-5550U can still be found for sale. This chip, released in 2015, continues to exist in used devices and some new entry-level models. Let’s explore who might find it useful today and what compromises they will need to make.

Architecture and Process Technology

Broadwell Code and 14nm: A Modest Step Forward

The Core i7-5550U belongs to the Broadwell generation (5th Intel series), built on a 14nm process. It was a transitional step between Haswell (22nm) and Skylake (14nm with optimizations).

- Cores and Threads: 2 physical cores with Hyper-Threading (4 threads). Base frequency is 2.0 GHz, with Turbo Boost up to 3.0 GHz.

- Cache: L3 cache of 4MB (shared between both cores).

- iGPU: Intel HD Graphics 6000 with 48 execution units and clock speeds up to 1000 MHz. It supports DirectX 11.2 and 4K output via DisplayPort.

Architectural Features:

- Improved energy efficiency compared to Haswell.

- Support for AVX2 instructions to accelerate encryption and rendering tasks.

- iGPU is 20% faster than the HD 5500 in comparable models.

Limitations:

- No support for DDR4 – it only works with DDR3L.

- Lacks hardware decoding for VP9 and HEVC, which is critical for 4K streaming.

Power Consumption and TDP

15W TDP: A Balance Between Power and Battery Life

The processor is designed for ultrabooks and thin laptops, where low heat generation and long battery life are essential.

- Power Saving Modes: Intel SpeedStep reduces frequency during idle, while Dynamic Tuning adapts TDP based on load.

- Thermal Package: Even under peak load, the chip does not require bulky cooling systems. In modern 2025 laptops, this allows for a thickness of up to 15 mm.

Issues:

- In Turbo Boost mode (3.0 GHz), temperatures can reach 75–80°C, leading to throttling in compact devices.

Performance in Real-World Tasks

Geekbench 6: 843 (Single-Core) / 1543 (Multi-Core)

For a 2015 processor, these results are decent, but by 2025, they are outperformed by even budget chips like the Intel Celeron N5100 (2021).

1. Office Work:

- Running Windows 11 or lightweight Linux distributions (Lubuntu) with Microsoft Office 365 is comfortable.

- Simultaneously working with 10+ tabs in Chrome may cause stuttering (8+ GB of RAM recommended).

2. Multimedia:

- Viewing Full HD videos: perfect.

- 4K@30fps: possible only through hardware decoders of the iGPU for H.264. YouTube 4K will push the CPU to 90–100% usage.

3. Gaming:

- Older games (pre-2015): CS:GO on low settings achieves 30–40 FPS at 720p.

- Modern titles: even indie games like Hades (2020) require resolution drops to 800x600.

Turbo Boost:

- For short tasks (application launches), frequency spikes up to 3.0 GHz, but after 20–30 seconds drops to 2.4–2.6 GHz due to overheating.

Use Cases

Who is the Core i7-5550U Relevant for in 2025?

1. Students: Text work, online courses, Zoom conferences.

2. Office Workers: Basic tasks in Excel, Word, and email clients.

3. Linux Users: Lightweight distributions (Fedora LXQt, Xubuntu) run smoothly.

4. Retro Gamers: Running older games via emulators (PSP, PS2—with limitations).

Not Suitable For:

- Video editing (even 1080p in DaVinci Resolve).

- Modern gaming and VR.

- Working with neural networks or AI-based applications.

Battery Life

How TDP Affects Runtime?

In 2025 laptops with a 40–50 Wh battery (e.g., new Lenovo IdeaPad 1 models with this CPU), battery life is:

- 6–8 hours of web surfing.

- 4–5 hours of video playback.

Energy Saving Technologies:

- Intel Smart Sound: Disables the audio chip during idle.

- Panel Self-Refresh: Reduces screen refresh rates in static scenes.

Comparison with Competitors

AMD A10-9600P (2016):

- Weaker in single-core tests (Geekbench 6 SC: ~550), but better in multi-core due to 4 physical cores.

- iGPU Radeon R5: 30% more powerful than HD Graphics 6000.

Apple M1 (2020):

- Geekbench 6 SC: 2300 / MC: 8300. A staggering gap even 5 years after the M1's release.

Intel Core i3-1215U (2022):

- 2 cores + 4 threads on Alder Lake architecture (10nm). Geekbench 6 SC: 1450 / MC: 3400. Laptop prices start at $450.

Conclusion: The Core i7-5550U in 2025 falls behind even budget newcomers but may be justified if the device costs under $300.

Pros and Cons

Strengths:

- Low cost of laptops (new models range from $250–$400).

- Adequate performance for basic tasks.

- Compactness and silent systems.

Weaknesses:

- Outdated architecture: no support for AVX-512, PCIe 4.0.

- Limited multi-threaded performance.

- Low energy efficiency by 2025 standards.

Laptop Selection Recommendations

Types of Devices:

- Ultrabooks: For example, Dell Latitude 3470 (2025 re-release) – weight 1.3 kg, 14" IPS screen.

- Budget Laptops: HP 15s-eq2000 – 15.6", 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD ($279).

What to Look For:

1. RAM: Minimum of 8GB (preferably upgradable).

2. Storage: SSD is essential (HDD is unacceptable even for office tasks).

3. Screen: Full HD is preferred over HD (1366x768).

4. Ports: USB-C with charging support is rare; check for USB 3.0 and HDMI availability.

Final Conclusion

The Core i7-5550U in 2025 is a choice for those needing an extremely cheap laptop for basic tasks. Its advantages include:

- Prices under $300 for new devices.

- Compatibility with Windows 11 and modern operating systems.

- Portability.

However, even budget processors from 2022–2024 (Intel N100, AMD Ryzen 3 7320U) offer double the performance at similar prices. Purchasing a laptop with the i7-5550U is only advisable for extreme budget cases or as a temporary solution.

Who It Suits:

- Budget-restricted students.

- Secondary devices for travel.

- Users who do not require high performance.

Alternative: For $350–400, laptops with Intel Core i3-1215U or AMD Ryzen 3 5425U can be found—a more sensible choice for 2025.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Mobile

Launch Date

March 2015

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.

i7-5550U

Code Name

Broadwell

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

2.00 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.

3.00 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 Frequency

3.00 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.

Yes

L3 Cache

4 MB

CPU Socket

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

FCBGA1168

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.

14 nm

TDP

15 W

Max. Operating Temperature

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

105°C

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

PCI Express Configurations

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

4x1 | 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.

DDR3L 1333/1600 | LPDDR3 1600/1866

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.

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).

25.6 GB/s

GPU Specifications

GPU Name

Intel® HD Graphics 6000

Graphics Base Frequency

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

300 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

Graphics Video Max Memory

16 GB

DirectX Support

DirectX* Support indicates support for a specific version of Microsoft’s collection of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) for handling multimedia compute tasks.

11.2/12

Max Resolution (HDMI)

Max Resolution (HDMI) is the maximum resolution supported by the processor via the HDMI interface (24bits per pixel & 60Hz). System or device display resolution is dependent on multiple system design factors; actual resolution may be lower on your system.

2560x1600@60Hz

Max Resolution (DP)

Max Resolution (DP) is the maximum resolution supported by the processor via the DP interface (24bits per pixel & 60Hz). System or device display resolution is dependent on multiple system design factors; actual resolution may be lower on your system.

3840x2160@60Hz

Number of Displays Supported

Graphics Output

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

eDP/DP/HDMI

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

Intel Standard Manageability (ISM)

Intel® Standard Manageability is the manageability solution for Intel vPro® Essentials platforms and is a subset of Intel® AMT with out-of-band management over Ethernet and Wi-Fi, but no KVM or new life cycle management features.

Intel® SSE4.1 | Intel® SSE4.2 | Intel® AVX2

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.

4 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 Clear Video Technology

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 OS Guard

Yes

OpenGL Support

OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) is a cross-language, multi-platform API (Application Programming Interface) for rendering 2D and 3D vector graphics.

4.3

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

843

Geekbench 6

Multi Core Score

1543

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

558

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

1072

Passmark CPU

Single Core Score

1797

Passmark CPU

Multi Core Score

2864

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core

Core i5-8200Y

938 +11.3%

EPYC 7281

892 +5.8%

Core i7-5550U

843

Core i3-7167U

770 -8.7%

Core m5-6Y54

713 -15.4%

Geekbench 6 Multi Core

Core i5-4278U

1860 +20.5%

Core i5-4570T

1719 +11.4%

Core i7-5550U

1543

Core i3-5015U

1412 -8.5%

Pentium D1508

1236 -19.9%

Geekbench 5 Single Core

EPYC 7501

594 +6.5%

Celeron 5305U

576 +3.2%

Core i7-5550U

558

Core i3-6100U

538 -3.6%

Pentium G2100T

522 -6.5%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Pentium G3440

1236 +15.3%

A10-9700E

1149 +7.2%

Core i7-5550U

1072

A8-3550MX

998 -6.9%

Celeron 5205U

895 -16.5%

Passmark CPU Single Core

Ryzen Embedded R1505G

1871 +4.1%

Core i5-7442EQ

1819 +1.2%

Core i7-5550U

1797

Core i5-3340

1772 -1.4%

Celeron G4900T

1749 -2.7%

Passmark CPU Multi Core

Core i5-2400S

3156 +10.2%

Core i7-5650U

3017 +5.3%

Core i7-5550U

2864

Core i5-3320M

2661 -7.1%

Core i5-3210M

2471 -13.7%