Athlon II M340 vs Pentium B980

Athlon II M340 vs Pentium B980 Performance Spectrum

Athlon II M340

2 / 2

1,115

+1.3%

Mobile Athlon 64 3700+

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 7955WX

Ryzen Threadripper 3990X

Pentium B980

2 / 2

1,101

0.0%

About PassMark

PassMark CPU Mark evaluates processor speed through complex mathematical computations. It provides a reliable metric to compare multi-core performance, where higher scores indicate faster processing for multitasking, gaming, and heavy workloads.

Athlon II M340 vs Pentium B980 FPS Benchmarks

Predicted gaming performance across popular games. Tested paired with GeForce RTX 5090 to isolate CPU performance.

Search any supported game below to compare 1080p FPS for both components.

Athlon II M340 vs Pentium B980: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each CPU makes more sense in practice: gaming, heavier work, platform cost, power draw, and upgrade path.

Athlon II M340

2009

Why buy it

✅+1.3% higher PassMark.
✅Costs $45 less on MSRP ($80 MSRP vs $125 MSRP).
✅Delivers 58.2% more PassMark for each dollar spent, at 13.9 vs 8.8 PassMark/$ ($80 MSRP vs $125 MSRP).
✅Draws 1W instead of 35W, a 34W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Fewer obvious downsides in this matchup outside of normal market pricing swings.

Pentium B980

2012

Why buy it

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (1,101 vs 1,115).
❌Lower PassMark per dollar, at 8.8 vs 13.9 PassMark/$ ($125 MSRP vs $80 MSRP).
❌3400% higher power demand at 35W vs 1W.

Quick Answers

So, is Athlon II M340 better than Pentium B980?

It depends on what you want from the system. For gaming, Pentium B980 is ahead with a 1.7% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data. For rendering, compiling, streaming, and heavier multitasking, Athlon II M340 pulls ahead with 1.3% better PassMark.

Which one is better for streaming, content creation, and heavy multitasking?

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Athlon II M340 is the stronger fit. You are getting 1.3% better PassMark, backed by 2 cores and 2 threads.

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper CPU?

Athlon II M340 is the better buy right now. Athlon II M340 comes in $45 cheaper on MSRP at $80 MSRP versus $125 MSRP, and it still gives you 1.3% better PassMark. The compromise is that Pentium B980 is still the better pure gaming CPU with a 1.7% average FPS lead across 50 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 58.2% better value on MSRP (13.9 vs 8.8 PassMark/$), so you are getting the faster CPU without taking a value hit on paper.

Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?

Pentium B980 makes more sense long term for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2012 vs 2009). That makes it the safer long-term bet.

Athlon II M340 vs Pentium B980 Technical Specifications

Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.

Athlon II M340

The Athlon II M340 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 2009-01-01. It is based on the Caspian (2009) architecture. It features 2 cores and 2 threads. Max frequency: 2.2 GHz. L2 cache: 1 MB. Built on 45 nm process technology. Socket: S1g3. Thermal design power (TDP): 1 MB. Memory support: DDR2. Passmark benchmark score: 1,115 points. Launch price was $149.

Pentium B980

The Pentium B980 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 1 September 2012 (13 years ago). It is based on the Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) architecture. It features 2 cores and 2 threads. Base frequency is 2.4 GHz, with boost up to 2.4 GHz. L3 cache: 2 MB (total). L2 cache: 256K (per core). Built on 32 nm process technology. Socket: PGA988. Thermal design power (TDP): 35 Watt. Memory support: DDR3. Passmark benchmark score: 1,101 points. Launch price was $125.

⚡

Processing Power

Both the Athlon II M340 and Pentium B980 share an identical 2-core/2-thread configuration. Boost clocks reach 2.2 GHz on the Athlon II M340 versus 2.4 GHz on the Pentium B980 — a 8.7% clock advantage for the Pentium B980. The Athlon II M340 uses the Caspian (2009) architecture (45 nm), while the Pentium B980 uses Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) (32 nm). In PassMark, the Athlon II M340 scores 1,115 against the Pentium B980's 1,101 — a 1.3% lead for the Athlon II M340.

Feature	Athlon II M340	Pentium B980
Cores / Threads	2 / 2	2 / 2
Boost Clock	2.2 GHz	2.4 GHz+9%
Base Clock	—	2.4 GHz
L3 Cache	—	2 MB (total)
L2 Cache	1 MB	256K (per core)+25500%
Process	45 nm	32 nm-29%
Architecture	Caspian (2009)	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)
PassMark	1,115+1%	1,101
Geekbench 6 Single	858	—
Geekbench 6 Multi	1,500	—

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Athlon II M340 uses the S1g3 socket (PCIe 2.0), while the Pentium B980 uses PGA988 (PCIe 2.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Athlon II M340	Pentium B980
Socket	S1g3	PGA988
PCIe Generation	PCIe 2.0	PCIe 2.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR2-800	—
Max RAM Capacity	8 GB	—
RAM Channels	2	—
ECC Support	No	—
PCIe Lanes	0	—

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization: AMD-V (Athlon II M340) / not specified (Pentium B980). Primary use case: Athlon II M340 targets Laptop.

Feature	Athlon II M340	Pentium B980
Integrated GPU	No	—
Unlocked	No	—
AVX-512	No	—
Virtualization	AMD-V	—
Target Use	Laptop	—

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Athlon II M340 was priced at $80, while the Pentium B980 came in at $125. On launch pricing ($80 vs $125), Athlon II M340 was $45 cheaper. In terms of value on MSRP (PassMark points per dollar), the Athlon II M340 delivers 13.9 pts/$ vs 8.8 pts/$ for the Pentium B980 — making the Athlon II M340 the 45.1% better value option.

Feature	Athlon II M340	Pentium B980
MSRP	$80-36%	$125
Performance per Dollar	13.9+58%	8.8
Release Date	2009	2012

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