Core i5-480M vs Celeron N2840

The Core i5-480M packs 2 cores / 4 threads, matching the Celeron N2840's 2 cores. Boost clocks reach 2.93 GHz on the Core i5-480M versus 2.58 GHz on the Celeron N2840 — a 12.7% clock advantage for the Core i5-480M (base: 2.66 GHz vs 2.16 GHz). The Core i5-480M uses the Arrandale (2010−2011) architecture (32 nm), while the Celeron N2840 uses Bay Trail-M (2013−2014) (22 nm). In PassMark, the Core i5-480M scores 1,327 against the Celeron N2840's 1,331 — a 0.3% lead for the Celeron N2840. L3 cache: 3 MB (total) on the Core i5-480M vs 0 kB on the Celeron N2840.

The Core i5-480M uses the PGA988 socket (PCIe 2.0), while the Celeron N2840 uses FCBGA1170 (PCIe 2.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches 1066 on the Core i5-480M versus DDR3L-1333 on the Celeron N2840 — the Core i5-480M supports 198.9% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. Both support up to 8 of RAM. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. PCIe lanes: 16 (Core i5-480M) vs 4 (Celeron N2840) — the Core i5-480M offers 12 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: HM55,HM57,QM57 (Core i5-480M) and SoC (Celeron N2840).

Neither processor supports overclocking. Virtualization support: true (Core i5-480M) vs VT-x (Celeron N2840). Both include integrated graphics — Intel HD Graphics (Ironlake) (Core i5-480M) and Intel HD Graphics (Bay Trail) (Celeron N2840) — useful as a fallback for troubleshooting or display output without a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Celeron N2840 targets Netbook. Direct competitor: Core i5-480M rivals AMD Turion II M620; Celeron N2840 rivals AMD A6-6310.