Intel Core 2 Duo T7400 vs Intel Core 2 Duo T9550 vs Intel Core 2 Duo P8700

Intel Core 2 Duo T7400

The Intel Core 2 Duo T7400 is a mobile dual core processor based on the Merom core. In 2006, the T7400 was a mid-range to high-end laptop processor. In 2010, the performance is only in the entry level segment. Later announced Penryn based Core 2 Duo processors are manufactured in 40nm and feature a higher speed per clock rate. Therefore, the Core 2 Duo P7450 is a bit faster and also more power efficient.

Intel Core 2 Duo T9550

The Intel Core 2 Duo T9550 was the middle class dual core CPU for laptops at the time of introduction. It is similar to the Core 2 Duo P9600 except for the higher TDP of 35 versus 25 Watt.

Due to the relatively high clock speed and 6MB Level 2 cache, the T9550 offers enough performance for demanding games (in 2009) and applications. 

The T9550 uses a Penryn (Montevina Update) core that features 2 integer units, 1 floating point unit, 1 load unit, and 1 store unit in a 14-stages long pipeline. Due to the Wide Dynamic Execution Technology, the core is able to simultaneously execute up to four instructions.

The integrated Enhanced Speedstep is able to downclock the core dynamically to save power (in idle mode).

Intel Core 2 Duo P8700

The Intel Core 2 Duo P8700 is a mid-range dual core processor for laptops. It features 2.53 GHz and a shared level 2 cache of 3 MB. Due to the smaller cache (Core 2 Duo T-Models got usually 6 MB at this clock rate), the TDP is only 25 Watt (instead of the 35 Watt of the T-models). Technically, the P8700 is a slower clocked P8800 CPU.

Due to the relatively high clock speed, modern games (in 2009) should not be limited by the CPU speed (in conjunction with a middle class graphics card). High end gamers should choose a higher clocked Dual Core instead (when using a high end GPU).

The P8700 uses a Penryn (Montevina Update) core that features 2 integer units, 1 floating point unit, 1 load unit, and 1 store unit in a 14-stages long pipeline. Due to the Wide Dynamic Execution Technology, the core is able to simultaneously execute up to four instructions.

The integrated Enhanced Speedstep is able to downclock the core dynamically as low as 1200 MHz to save power (in idle mode).