Athlon II N370 vs Pentium 3556U

Performance Spectrum - CPU

Athlon II N370

2 / 2

1,085

+1.2%

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 7955WX

Ryzen Threadripper 3990X

Pentium 3556U

2 / 2

1,072

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.

Value Upgrade Path

This is the official ChipVERSUS Value Rating, comparing raw performance (PassMark) per dollar. Components placed above yours deliver better value for money. The Athlon II N370 is positioned at rank 923 and the Pentium 3556U is on rank 253, so the Pentium 3556U offers better cost-efficiency for playing games.

MSRP is the manufacturer's suggested retail price.•
Avg price is the current average price collected from markets across the web.

Performance Per Dollar Athlon II N370

#911

Atom x5-Z8300

MSRP: $20|Avg: N/A

1623%

#912

Atom Z3735G

MSRP: $17|Avg: N/A

1599%

#913

Core i5-480M

MSRP: $81|Avg: $77

1468%

#914

Core i5-460M

MSRP: $80|Avg: $129

1461%

#915

Core i5-2540M

MSRP: $266|Avg: $10

1448%

#917

Core i5-450M

MSRP: $32|Avg: $31

1398%

#918

Core i3-380M

MSRP: $49|Avg: $25

1341%

#919

Core i5-430M

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $33

1338%

#920

Core 2 Duo T6600

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $4

1303%

#923

Athlon II N370

MSRP: $60|Avg: $10

100%

#928

A8-6410

MSRP: $100|Avg: $40

98%

#933

Athlon X2 L310

MSRP: $100|Avg: $20

97%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Per Dollar Pentium 3556U

#241

Atom x5-Z8300

MSRP: $20|Avg: N/A

411%

#242

Atom Z3735G

MSRP: $17|Avg: N/A

405%

#243

Core i5-480M

MSRP: $81|Avg: $77

371%

#244

Core i5-460M

MSRP: $80|Avg: $129

370%

#245

Core i5-2540M

MSRP: $266|Avg: $10

366%

#247

Core i5-450M

MSRP: $32|Avg: $31

354%

#248

Core i3-380M

MSRP: $49|Avg: $25

339%

#249

Core i5-430M

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $33

339%

#250

Core 2 Duo T6600

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $4

330%

#253

Pentium 3556U

MSRP: N/A|Avg: N/A

100%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Comparison

About PassMark

🏆 Chipversus Verdict

🚀 Performance Leadership

Performance Leadership: The Athlon II N370 delivers superior performance across the board. It outperforms the Pentium 3556U in both compute-intensive tasks (1.2% faster) and gaming workloads.

Insight	Athlon II N370	Pentium 3556U
Gaming	✅ Superior gaming performance	❌ Lower gaming performance
Workstation	✅ Better multi-core power	❌ Weaker in multi-core tasks
Price	⚠️ Higher cost ($10)	✅ More affordable ($0)
Longevity	🛑 Legacy (Champlain (2010−2011) / 45 nm)	🛑 Legacy (Haswell (2013−2015) / 22 nm)

💎 Value Proposition

Insight	Athlon II N370	Pentium 3556U
Cost Efficiency	❌ Lower cost efficiency	❌ Lower cost efficiency
Upfront Cost	⚠️ Higher cost ($10)	✅ More affordable ($0)

Performance Check

Paired with RTX 4090

To accurately isolate CPU performance, all benchmarks below use an NVIDIA RTX 4090 as the reference GPU. This eliminates GPU-side bottlenecks and highlights pure processing throughput differences between the CPUs.

Note: Real-world results may vary based on your actual GPU. CPU performance impact is more visible in processing-intensive titles and high-refresh-rate gaming scenarios.

Athlon II N370 Benchmark Check

Pentium 3556U Benchmark Check

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Athlon II N370 and Pentium 3556U

Athlon II N370

The Athlon II N370 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 2009-01-01. It is based on the Champlain (2010−2011) architecture. It features 2 cores and 2 threads. Max frequency: 2.5 GHz. L2 cache: 1 MB. Built on 45 nm process technology. Socket: S1. Thermal design power (TDP): 1 MB. Memory support: DDR3. Passmark benchmark score: 1,085 points. Launch price was $149.

Pentium 3556U

The Pentium 3556U is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 2007-01-01. It is based on the Haswell (2013−2015) architecture. It features 2 cores and 2 threads. Base frequency is 1.7 GHz, with boost up to 1.7 GHz. L3 cache: 2 MB (total). L2 cache: 256K (per core). Built on 22 nm process technology. Socket: FCBGA1168. Thermal design power (TDP): 15 Watt. Memory support: DDR3. Passmark benchmark score: 1,072 points. Launch price was $69.

⚡

Processing Power

Both the Athlon II N370 and Pentium 3556U share an identical 2-core/2-thread configuration. Boost clocks reach 2.5 GHz on the Athlon II N370 versus 1.7 GHz on the Pentium 3556U — a 38.1% clock advantage for the Athlon II N370. The Athlon II N370 uses the Champlain (2010−2011) architecture (45 nm), while the Pentium 3556U uses Haswell (2013−2015) (22 nm). In PassMark, the Athlon II N370 scores 1,085 against the Pentium 3556U's 1,072 — a 1.2% lead for the Athlon II N370.

Feature	Athlon II N370	Pentium 3556U
Cores / Threads	2 / 2	2 / 2
Boost Clock	2.5 GHz+47%	1.7 GHz
Base Clock	—	1.7 GHz
L3 Cache	—	2 MB (total)
L2 Cache	1 MB+300%	256K (per core)
Process	45 nm	22 nm-51%
Architecture	Champlain (2010−2011)	Haswell (2013−2015)
PassMark	1,085+1%	1,072
Geekbench 6 Single	220	—
Geekbench 6 Multi	420	—

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Athlon II N370 uses the S1 socket (PCIe 2.0), while the Pentium 3556U uses FCBGA1168 (PCIe 3.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Athlon II N370	Pentium 3556U
Socket	S1	FCBGA1168
PCIe Generation	PCIe 2.0	PCIe 3.0+50%
Max RAM Speed	DDR3-1066	—
Max RAM Capacity	8 GB	—
RAM Channels	2	—
ECC Support	❌	—
PCIe Lanes	0	—

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization: AMD-V (Athlon II N370) / not specified (Pentium 3556U). Primary use case: Athlon II N370 targets Legacy Laptop. Direct competitor: Athlon II N370 rivals Pentium P6100.