Difference between dual core and core2duo

The difference between core2duo and dual core has been an area of interest primarily because of the similarity between the names. Most of the sites tell about a larger cache size but there is a bigger picture to it.

Core2 is a brand by Intel featuring the Intel’s eighth generation “Intel core microarchitecture”, which uses highly improved processor cores or wafers or dyes of the Intel P6 in combinations to provide an increased performance. It is an attempt by Intel to bring computing on laptops and desktops into a single processor banner of core2, which was earlier divided into Pentium 4, Pentium D and Pentium M. This gives us the unheard core2solo, the highly successful core2duo, the next buzzword core2quad and the performance freak’s core2extreme.

It includes the Merom and Kentsfield, and their future versions namely the highly successful Penryn, the Wolfdale and the Yorkfield. They come in mixed flavors of laptop and desktop version.

Core2duo was launched in Aug 2006 and features the Intel Core microarchitecture. It was a whole new range of processors and used new improved versions of technologies like x86 virtualization, SSE3, SSE 4.1, NX bit, SpeedStep and others. The shift of Intel’s focus from processor speed to overall performance delivered in the form of these core2duo processors which have better processing power and low power consumption. The core2duo is the dual core version of the core2 architecture. It comprises of Mermon and the latest Penryn(45 nm) cores. Penryn also allows DDR3 on desktop PCs. This brought a whole new world of low cost processing power for notebooks and a new battle, rather battlefield.

Dual core was launched under the Pentium brand and became popular soon because Intel started launching the dual core for notebooks early in 2007, and then for desktops in mid 2007. These processors are based on the Yonah , Morman and Allendale. The dual core comes mainly in 65nm cores with the 45 nm version released in August this year.

A mention of the Pentium D processor here is important because, Pentium D, although based on the multi-core technology still has a number of limitations, like high power consumption and comparatively low performance.

Finally, here is a quick comparative.

1. core2duo started before dual core.
2. core2duo is under the core2 brand, dual core is under the Pentium brand.
3. core2duo limits processor speed to 3.3 GHz, dual core limits it to 2.5 GHz.
4. core2duo offers cache size of upto 6MB l2 cache with scope for L3 cache as well, dual core limits it to around 2 MB.
   
5. FSB on core2duo goes to 1600 MT/s(million transfers per sec., around 1300 MHz), whereas on dual core goes to 800 MHz.
6. core2duo allows support for SSE4 on selected processors, dual core allows only till SSE3.
7. Both are based on the intel core microarchitecture.
8. core2duo features improved x86 virtualization, SSE3, SSE 4.1, NX bit, SpeedStep, Thermal Design Power, Active Management Technology etc.
9. core2duo comes for higher prices, and is simply better than mainstream dual core.

Finally, you understand this by now, but I would like to point it out to you that Core2duo is far better than Dual core.