Home / Intel Pentium / Intel Pentium G870: Performance and Specs

Intel Pentium G870

Intel Pentium G870: A Comprehensive Review of an Outdated Yet Reliable Solution for Basic Tasks (2025)

Introduction

Even in 2025, Sandy Bridge family processors remain in use in office PCs and media centers. The Pentium G870 is a typical representative from the 2011-2013 era that has retained its relevance due to low power consumption and availability on the secondary market. Let’s explore who could benefit from it today.

1. Key Specifications: Architecture and Performance

Sandy Bridge Architecture

The processor is built on the Sandy Bridge microarchitecture (2011), which represented a step forward compared to the previous Nehalem generation. Key features include:

- 32 nm manufacturing process — outdated by 2025 standards but ensures moderate heat generation.

- 2 cores / 2 threads — no Hyper-Threading limits multitasking capabilities.

- Base frequency of 3.1 GHz — fixed multiplier, overclocking is locked.

- L3 Cache: 3 MB — a modest size for modern applications.

Performance

Geekbench 6 tests (2025):

- Single-core: 493 points — comparable to budget ARM processors found in laptops.

- Multi-core: 757 points — on par with basic Chromebooks.

Key Features

- Integrated Graphics Intel HD Graphics — suitable only for HD image and video output.

- Support for AVX instructions — speeds up some scientific calculations.

- Turbo Boost technology is absent — frequency remains static even under load.

2. Compatible Motherboards

LGA 1155 Socket

This processor requires motherboards with LGA 1155 sockets, which have long been discontinued. On the secondary market (e.g., eBay), the following models can be found:

- Budget: ASUS P8H61-M LX (from $25 used).

- Mid-range: Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3 (up to $50 used).

Chipsets

- H61: Minimal functionality, no USB 3.0 support.

- Z68: Overclocking support (for other CPUs), SSD caching.

Selection Considerations

- Check the condition of capacitors on used boards.

- Look for models with SATA III for SSD support.

- USB 3.0 is available only on boards with H67/Z68 chipsets.

3. Supported Memory

Memory Type: DDR3

- Max. frequency: 1333 MHz (officially), but some boards allow the use of 1600 MHz modules.

- Dual-channel mode — it is recommended to install 2 identical modules (e.g., 2x4 GB).

Recommendations for 2025

- Use DDR3L (1.35 V) for reduced power consumption.

- Avoid modules larger than 8 GB — conflicts may arise with older chipsets.

4. Power Supply: Calculation and Recommendations

Power Consumption

- TDP 65 W — in reality, consumption rarely exceeds 50 W.

- A system with Pentium G870 + SSD + HDD + no discrete graphics card requires ~150-200 W.

Power Supply Selection

- Minimum: 400 W (e.g., EVGA 400 N1, $35).

- With a graphics card: 500 W (if planning to install a GTX 1650 or equivalent).

- Tip: 80+ Bronze certified units will improve system efficiency.

5. Pros and Cons of the Processor

Pros

- Low price: New units (rare!) — $40–50, used — $10–15.

- Energy efficiency: Ideal for a PC running 24/7.

- Reliability: The absence of complex technologies reduces the risk of failures.

Cons

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

- Weak multi-threaded potential: Can struggle when simultaneously running a browser and office applications.

6. Usage Scenarios

Office Tasks

- Document work, email, video calls (Zoom, Skype).

- Example: A system based on G870 + 8 GB DDR3 + SSD can handle 10+ tabs in Chrome but will slow down when processing PDFs >100 MB.

Multimedia

- Playback of 1080p video (via VLC or Kodi).

- Limitation: 4K videos will stutter even with hardware decoding.

Gaming

- Older titles (Half-Life 2, CS:GO on low settings).

- Tip: Add a graphics card like the GT 1030 ($90 new) for games from the 2010s.

7. Comparison with Competitors

AMD Athlon II X4 640 (4 cores, 2010):

- Pros: 4 physical cores are better for multi-threading.

- Cons: Higher power consumption (95 W).

Intel Core i3-2100 (2 cores / 4 threads):

- Pros: Hyper-Threading enhances multitasking.

- Cons: Higher prices on the used market ($20–25).

8. Practical Assembly Tips

Optimal Configuration

- Motherboard: ASRock H61M-DGS (used, $30).

- Memory: 8 GB DDR3 1333 MHz (2x4 GB, $25 new).

- Storage: Kingston A400 240 GB ($30).

Life Hacks

- Install Linux (Lubuntu or Xubuntu) to speed up the system.

- Use an external USB adapter for Wi-Fi at 5 GHz if the motherboard lacks a wireless module.

9. Final Conclusion: Who is the Pentium G870 Suitable for in 2025?

Consider this processor for:

- Owners of old PCs looking to upgrade without changing the platform.

- Enthusiasts building ultra-budget systems (e.g., for retro gaming).

- Organizations needing simple terminals for text work.

Why not?

- For modern tasks (2020s gaming, video editing, ML) the processor is ineffective.

- Investments in the LGA 1155 platform are unjustified — better to choose budget AMD Athlon 3000G ($120 new) or Intel Celeron G6900 ($80 new).

Conclusion

The Pentium G870 is a relic of its era that can still serve in niche scenarios. Its main advantages are price and minimal cooling requirements. However, in 2025, it would be wiser to opt for modern APUs or mini-PCs running on ARM for even basic tasks.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Desktop

Launch Date

April 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.

G870

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

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.

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.

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

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

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

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.

1.10 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.

3 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

493

Geekbench 6

Multi Core Score

757

Geekbench 5

Single Core Score

549

Geekbench 5

Multi Core Score

1004

Passmark CPU

Single Core Score

1467

Passmark CPU

Multi Core Score

1523

Compared to Other CPU

Geekbench 6 Single Core

PRO A10-8770E

567 +15%

Pentium Silver N6000

528 +7.1%

Pentium G870

493

Celeron G1610

456 -7.5%

Xeon E5-2620

422 -14.4%

Geekbench 6 Multi Core

Core i7-2620M

979 +29.3%

Core i3-2100

908 +19.9%

Pentium G870

757

Xeon E5-4640

658 -13.1%

Athlon X2 340

549 -27.5%

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Xeon X5667

584 +6.4%

Core i7-2620M

564 +2.7%

Pentium G870

549

Xeon D-1559

529 -3.6%

Xeon E5-4660 v4

514 -6.4%

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Core i3-2105

1152 +14.7%

Core i7-2677M

1073 +6.9%

Pentium G870

1004

Core M-5Y70

901 -10.3%

A8-3510MX

840 -16.3%

Passmark CPU Single Core

Athlon X4 860K

1522 +3.7%

FX-6300

1489 +1.5%

Pentium G870

1467

Core i5-2405S

1434 -2.2%

Pentium Silver J5040

1400 -4.6%

Passmark CPU Multi Core

A8-5550M

1859 +22.1%

PRO A6-9500E

1662 +9.1%

Pentium G870

1523

Core i3-2370M

1368 -10.2%

Celeron 3765U

1252 -17.8%