The new 45nm ‘Wolfdale’ CPUs have hit the desktop market and are the latest and greatest from Intel for the mainstream desktop market. But the Wolfdales are still relatively pricey, as one is expected to pay a premium for the latest technology and performance. However, Intel now has the 45nm line in full force with the release of the ‘budget’ 45nm CPU, the C2D E7200.
Dubbed the Wolfdale-3M, the E7200 features the same architecture and 45nm process as the other Wolfdales, but has its L2 cache cut down from 6MB to 3MB. The default FSB is now also 1066MHz and the cores run at a clock speed of 2.53GHz. How do these toned-down specs compare in performance?
In POV-Ray, the E7200 managed 769.92 points using both cores. Compare this with an E8500 running at 3.16GHz which scored 967.82 points. That puts the E7200 at about 80% of performance of the E8500. But the E8500 costs more than DOUBLE the price of an E7200. The results tell the same story with Cinebench, at 856 points on all cores for the E7200. For casual Vista desktop use, the Windows Experience Index puts the overall score of our testbed with the E7200 at 5.9 points – the same as a Quad-core Xeon X5365.
With retail prices hovering around $140 for a E7200, the price-performance value of this ‘budget’ Wolfdale is truly remarkable. Being 45nm also means it enjoys the benefits of efficient power and heat dissipation, suggesting high overclocking potential.
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