Intel Core i5-4302Y vs AMD A6-9210 vs AMD A9-9425

Intel Core i5-4302Y

AMD A6-9210

The AMD A6-9210 is an entry-level chip from the Stoney-Ridge APU series for notebooks (7th APU generation), which was announced mid 2016. At its launch, the A6-9210 is the mid-range Stoney Ridge processor (dual-core version of Bristol Ridge) and integrates two CPU cores (one Excavator module with 2 integer and on FP unit) clocked between 2.4-2.8 GHz. It also includes a Radeon R4 GPU, probably with 192 shaders at 600 MHz, as well as a single-channel DDR4-2133 memory controller, H.265 video engine and chipset with all I/O ports.

Architecture

Stoney Ridge is the successor of the Carrizo architecture and the design is almost identical. Thanks to optimized manufacturing processes and more aggressive Boost behavior, however, the clocks are a bit higher at the same power consumption. The memory controller now also supports DDR4-RAM, in this case up to 2133 MHz. Stoney Ridge is the designation for the smaller dual-core and single-core chip, while Bristol Ridge is the bigger quad-core chip with dual-channel memory controller. More technical details are available in the following articles:

• AMD's Bristol Ridge and Stoney Ridge Architecture
• AMD: Bristol Ridge APUs announced

Performance

Because of the significantly lower clock range, the A6-9210 should be noticeably slower than the A9-9410.

Graphics Card

The integrated Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge) GPU is probably similar to the R5 with 192 active shader units (3 compute cores), but a reduced clock of just 600 instead of 800 MHz. More details about the GPU are available in the linked articles above. 

Power Consumption

AMD specifies the TDP of the A6-9210 with 15 Watts, but it can be configured between 10-15 Watts. This means the APU is a good choice for thin and light notebooks.

AMD A9-9425

The AMD A9-9425 is an entry-level chip from the Stoney-Ridge APU series for notebooks (7th APU generation), which was announced mid 2018. Compared to the one year older A9-9420, the 9425 has a 100 MHz higher CPU clock speed (base and boost) as well as a marginally faster iGPU. It integrates two CPU cores (one Excavator module with 2 integer and on FP unit) clocked at 3.1 GHz to 3.7 GHz. It also includes a Radeon R5 GPU with 192 shaders at up to 900 MHz as well as a single-channel DDR4-2133 memory controller, H.265 video decoder and chipset with all I/O ports.

Architecture

Stoney Ridge is the successor of the Carrizo architecture and the design is almost identical. Thanks to optimized manufacturing processes and more aggressive Boost behavior, however, the clocks are a bit higher at the same power consumption. The memory controller now also supports DDR4-RAM, in this case up to 2133 MHz. Stoney Ridge is the designation for the smaller dual-core and single-core chip, while Bristol Ridge is the bigger quad-core chip with dual-channel memory controller. More technical details are available in the following articles:

• AMD's Bristol Ridge and Stoney Ridge Architecture
• AMD: Bristol Ridge APUs announced

Performance

The average 9425 in our database proves to be a rather slow CPU, its multi-thread benchmark scores only just matching those of the Intel Core i3-4012Y. Much like it is with N-class Intel chips, expect a system built around an A9-9425 to perform poorly in all but the most basic tasks.

Graphics

The integrated Radeon R5 (Stoney Ridge) GPU has 192 active shader units (3 compute cores) clocked at up to 900 MHz. More details about the GPU are available in the linked articles above.

Power consumption

This A9 series chip has a default TDP of 15 W. Laptop makers are free to reduce that somewhat with 10 W being the minimum AMD-recommended value; clock speeds and performance will be reduced as a result. By going for the lowest value, it will be possible to build a passively cooled system around the APU.

Last but not the least, the AMD A9-9425 is manufactured on a 28 nm process for very, very low energy efficiency, as of 2022.