Intel Core i5-10310U vs Intel Core i3-N300 vs Intel Core i3-10110U

Intel Core i5-10310U

The Intel Core i5-10310U is a power efficient quad-core SoC for notebooks based on the Comet Lake (CML-U) generation and was announced in August 2019. Compared to the similar Whiskey Lake processors (e.g. Core i5-8665U), the only difference is support for higher memory speeds (DDR4-2666 vs 2400) and two additional cores in the top model (not in this i5). The processor cores are clocked between 1.7 and 4.4 GHz (unverified). Thanks to HyperThreading 8 threads can be used. Compared to the faster i5-10510U, the level 3 cache was reduced from 8 to 6 MB. More information on Comet Lake and all the models and articles on it can be found here. The CPU supports the professional management features under the vPro umbrella.

The integrated graphics adapter however is still the same as in the previous generations. It should be still called Intel HD Graphics 620 and clock from 300 - 1100 MHz in the i5. Furthermore, the SoC integrates a VP9 and H.265 de- and encoder and an integrated dual channel DDR4-2666 / LPDDR4x 2933 / LPDDR3-2133 memory controller.

Performance

The average 10310U in our database is not really any different than other quad-core laptop CPUs running at similar clock speeds, such as the Ryzen 5 3450U or the Core i5-1035G4.

Your mileage may vary depending on how high the CPU power limits are and how competent the cooling solution of your system is.

Power consumption

This Core i5 has a default TDP (also known as the long-term power limit) of 15 W, a value that laptop manufacturers are free to change to anything between 10 W and 25 W with clock speeds and performance changing correspondingly. Perhaps more importantly, short-term power consumption can be as high as 80 W or even 90 W as far as 10th gen Comet Lake U chips are concerned, making passively cooled designs unlikely.

This Intel processor is manufactured on a fairly old, as of late 2022, 14 nm Intel process for subpar energy efficiency.

Intel Core i3-N300

The Intel Core i3-N305 is an entry-level mobile CPU for thin and light laptops from the Alder Lake-N series. It was announced in early 2023 and offers no performance cores and 8 efficient cores (E-cores, Gracemont architecture). The chip does not support HyperThreading and clocks with up to 3.8 GHz (single core, 3 GHz all core Turbo). The performance of the E-cores should be similar to old Skylake cores (compare to the Core i7-6700HQ). All cores can use up to 6 MB L3-cache. 

Performance

The performance depends on the cooling and TDP settings and should be somewhere similar to the old  Alder Lake Pentium 8500 (1 performance core, 4 efficiency cores, max. 4.4 GHz and 8 MB L3-cache). The multi-threaded performance should be quite good with the 8 cores but will suffer due to the low TDP. Single thread performance will suffer due to the missing P-cores and relatively low boost clock speeds.

Features

The Alder Lake-N chips only support single channel memory with up to DDR5-4800, DDR4-3200 or LPDDR5-4800. The chip also supports Quick Sync and AV1 decoding (most likely same engine as in Alder Lake). Furthermore, Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2 are partly integrated (but no Thunderbolt). External chips can be connected via PCIe Gen3 x9 (via the PCH).

The integrated graphics adapter is based on the Xe-architecture and offersall 32 EUs (Execution Units) operating at up to 1.25 GHz. In addition to the single channel memory, the gaming performance is very limited of the iGPU.

Power consumption

The i3 has a base power consumption of 7 W and is therefore even suited for fanless cooling. The CPU is built with a further improved 10nm SuperFin process at Intel (called Intel 7).

Intel Core i3-10110U

The Intel Core i3-10110U is a dual-core SoC of the Comet Lake family. The i3 is designed for use in ultraportable laptops of the more affordable flavor as well as mini-PCs. It was announced in August 2019. Just like the other Comet Lake processors, this Core i3 features several advantages over the outgoing Whiskey Lake family including support for faster memory (up to LPDDR4-2933).

Core i3-10110U runs at 2.1 GHz to 4.1 GHz (only 3.7 GHz are reachable when under multi-thread load). Hyper-Threading support is enabled for 4 processing threads in total.

Performance

The average 10110U in our database shapes up to be a decent entry-level CPU, as of late 2021, its multi-thread benchmark scores nearly matching those of the AMD Ryzen 3 3250U and also the Core i3-8145U. While not a whole lot faster than Intel's more affordable Pentium Gold and Pentium Silver chips, the i3 will still let you run most apps with virtually no annoying slowdowns.

Your mileage may vary depending on how high the CPU power limits are and how competent the cooling solution of your system is.

Graphics

The Intel UHD Graphics 620 runs at up to 1,000 MHz. What makes this specific iGPU peculiar is that it only has 23 Execution Units at its disposal, not the 24 EUs typical for a UHD Graphics 620. Otherwise, it's the usual affair with 4K monitor support (up to three displays at the same time) and a hardware video decoder that's friends with VP9, AVC, HEVC but not the newer AV1 video codec.

Power consumption

This Core i3 series chip has a default TDP (also known as the long-term power limit) of 15 W, a value that laptop makers are allowed to change to anything between 10 W and 25 W with clock speeds and performance changing correspondingly. By going for the lowest value, it will be possible to build a passively cooled system around the SoC.

The i3-10110U is built with one of the old 14 nm Intel processees for low, as of early 2023, energy efficiency.