Celeron G1630 vs Core i5-520M

The Celeron G1630 packs 2 cores / 2 threads, matching the Core i5-520M's 2 cores. Boost clocks reach 2.8 GHz on the Celeron G1630 versus 2.93 GHz on the Core i5-520M — a 4.5% clock advantage for the Core i5-520M (base: 2.8 GHz vs 2.4 GHz). The Celeron G1630 uses the Ivy Bridge (2012−2013) architecture (22 nm), while the Core i5-520M uses Arrandale (2010−2011) (32 nm). In PassMark, the Celeron G1630 scores 1,707 against the Core i5-520M's 1,727 — a 1.2% lead for the Core i5-520M. Geekbench 6 single-core — the metric most relevant to gaming — records 386 vs 360, a 7% lead for the Celeron G1630 that directly translates to higher frame rates. Multi-core Geekbench: 635 vs 695 (9% advantage for the Core i5-520M). L3 cache: 2 MB (total) on the Celeron G1630 vs 3 MB on the Core i5-520M.

The Celeron G1630 uses the LGA1155 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Core i5-520M uses PGA988 (PCIe 2.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches DDR3-1333 on the Celeron G1630 versus 1066 on the Core i5-520M — the Core i5-520M supports 198.9% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Celeron G1630 supports up to 32 GB of RAM compared to 8 — 120% more capacity for professional workloads. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. Both provide 16 PCIe lanes. Chipset compatibility: H61,B75,H77,Z77 (Celeron G1630) and HM55,HM57,QM57 (Core i5-520M).

Neither processor supports overclocking. Virtualization support: VT-x (Celeron G1630) vs true (Core i5-520M). Both include integrated graphics — HD Graphics (Ivy Bridge) (Celeron G1630) and Intel HD Graphics (Ironlake) (Core i5-520M) — useful as a fallback for troubleshooting or display output without a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Celeron G1630 targets Budget. Direct competitor: Celeron G1630 rivals Pentium G2030; Core i5-520M rivals AMD Turion II Ultra M660.

The Celeron G1630 launched at $42 MSRP, while the Core i5-520M debuted at $225.