AMD A4-5000 Review: Kabini, the mainstream APU
In 2006 AMD announced ‘Fusion’, a project aimed to develop a system on a chip that combined a CPU and GPU on a single die. Making the dream a reality for AMD was their acquisition of graphics chipset manufacturer ATI that same year.
The project wasn’t without technical difficulties however, and it took AMD 5 years until the first Fusion APU saw the light of day. Based on the Lynx architecture, this first chip combined K10 CPU cores and a Radeon HD 6000 series GPU. Shortly after AMD would release APUs designed for desktop (Llano), mobile (Sabine), ultra-mobile and embedded (Brazos) platforms. All of these APUs and even current generation ones managed to fit a CPU and GPU into a single die, but still required a chipset to properly function.
If AMD could move the chipset on-die, then they would have created a true SoC solution and would be a step closer to a Heterogeneous System Architecture (HSA).
With the new Kabini and Temash platforms AMD has achieved just that. The Kabini APU that we are reviewing here today is aimed at the subnotebook, ultra-thin and small form factor markets, while Temash is aimed at tablets, hybrid laptops and other ultra-low power devices, usually with screens 11 inches or lower.
Based on the Jaguar architecture these new APUs feature between 2 and 4 cores, numerous architectural improvements regarding power requirements and performance such as support for newer x86-instructions, a higher IPC, a CC6 power state mode and clock gating.
However, the big news is that Kabini will be AMD’s first, and also the first ever, quad-core x86-based SoC. The chipset or Fusion Controller Hub (FCH) for Kabini is codenamed «Yangtze» and is integrated on-die. Moreover, Kabini will feature DirectX 11.1-compliant GCN-based graphics as well as numerous heterogeneous system architecture (HSA) improvements.
While on the topic, the new HSA branding is meant to take over Fusion due to a trademark dispute between AMD and Arctic Switzerland AG.
Arctic claims to be the first to use «Fusion» for its range of computer power supply products since 2006.
AMD are releasing their first Kabini based processors today with the launch of the A6-5200 and the A4-5000. For some reason AMD has only sampled laptops featuring the A4-5000 which targets the budget Pentium line, we assume because they believe this is the more interesting processor out of the two.
The A4-5000 features four Jaguar cores clocked at 1.5GHz and a total L2 cache of 2MB, while the on-die GPU is the Radeon HD 8330. The faster A6-5200 still features four cores but clocked at 2.0GHz, while the GPU of choice is the Radeon HD 8400.
When compared to the Bobcat cores used in previous APUs, Jaguar improve on performance in a given power envelope. Jaguar offers a higher IPC, better frequency at a given voltage and improved power efficiency through clock gating and unit redesign. The instruction set as also been expanded to include SSE4.
1, SSE4.2, AES, CLMUL, MOVBE, AXV, XSAVE/XSAVEOPT, F16C and BMI1.
Improvements made to the Jaguar core’s frontend, integer execution, floating point unit, data cache, L2 interface and shared cache unit have all helped to improve efficiency as has the move to the 28nm design process.
The integrated Kabini chipset features support for two USB 3.0 ports, two SATA 6Gb/s ports, as well as xHCI 1.0 and SD/SDIO 3.0 protocols for SD-card support.
Utilizing Radeon HD 8000 series graphics, Kabini supports a range of APIs including DirectX 11.1, OpenGL 4.3, OpenGL ES 3.0 for the graphics and OpenGL 1.2, DirectCompute and C++ AMP for compute.
Although the A6-5200 (HD 8400) and A4-5000 (HD 8330) feature different GPUs, they are actually very similar as they both boast 128 SPUs, 16 TAUs and 16 ROPs. They do differ in clock speeds, where the HD 8330 runs at 500MHz while the 8400 is slightly faster at 600MHz.
These are similar specifications to the Radeon HD 7480D featured in the A4-5300 processor, which we happen to have on hand for testing, so it will be interesting to see how the two compare. Finally, it is worth mentioning that Kabini features dual display Eyefinity support along with wireless display support.
AMD A4-5000 vs Intel Core i3-3130M: What is the difference?
32points
AMD A4-5000
40points
Intel Core i3-3130M
Comparison winner
vs
63 facts in comparison
AMD A4-5000
Intel Core i3-3130M
Why is AMD A4-5000 better than Intel Core i3-3130M?
- 15.38% faster CPU speed?
4 x 1.5GHzvs2 x 2.6GHz - 1.5MB bigger L2 cache?
2MBvs0.5MB - 20W lower TDP?
15Wvs35W - 384KB bigger L1 cache?
512KBvs128KB - Has AES?
Why is Intel Core i3-3130M better than AMD A4-5000?
- 15°C higher maximum operating temperature?
105°Cvs90°C - 153MHz faster GPU clock speed?
650MHzvs497MHz - 6nm smaller semiconductor size?
22nmvs28nm - 2.
87x higher PassMark result?
3655vs1272 - 12.8GB/s more memory bandwidth?
25.6GB/svs12.8GB/s - 1 more memory channels?
2vs1 - Uses multithreading?
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Price comparison
User reviews
Performance
CPU speed
4 x 1.
5GHz
2 x 2.6GHz
The CPU speed indicates how many processing cycles per second can be executed by a CPU, considering all of its cores (processing units). It is calculated by adding the clock rates of each core or, in the case of multi-core processors employing different microarchitectures, of each group of cores.
CPU threads
More threads result in faster performance and better multitasking.
turbo clock speed
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
When the CPU is running below its limitations, it can boost to a higher clock speed in order to give increased performance.
Has an unlocked multiplier
✖AMD A4-5000
✖Intel Core i3-3130M
Some processors come with an unlocked multiplier which makes them easy to overclock, allowing you to gain increased performance in games and other apps.
L2 cache
A larger L2 cache results in faster CPU and system-wide performance.
L3 cache
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
A larger L3 cache results in faster CPU and system-wide performance.
L1 cache
A larger L1 cache results in faster CPU and system-wide performance.
L2 core
0.25MB/core
0.25MB/core
More data can be stored in the L2 cache for access by each core of the CPU.
L3 core
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
1.5MB/core
More data can be stored in the L3 cache for access by each core of the CPU.
Benchmarks
PassMark result
This benchmark measures the performance of the CPU using multiple threads.
PassMark result (single)
Unknown.
Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
This benchmark measures the performance of the CPU using a single thread.
Geekbench 5 result (multi)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
Geekbench 5 is a cross-platform benchmark that measures a processor’s multi-core performance. (Source: Primate Labs, 2022)
Cinebench R20 (multi) result
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
Cinebench R20 is a benchmark tool that measures a CPU’s multi-core performance by rendering a 3D scene.
Cinebench R20 (single) result
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
Cinebench R20 is a benchmark tool that measures a CPU’s single-core performance by rendering a 3D scene.
Geekbench 5 result (single)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
Geekbench 5 is a cross-platform benchmark that measures a processor’s single-core performance. (Source: Primate Labs, 2022)
Blender (bmw27) result
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
The Blender (bmw27) benchmark measures the performance of a processor by rendering a 3D scene. More powerful processors can render the scene in less time.
Blender (classroom) result
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
The Blender (classroom) benchmark measures the performance of a processor by rendering a 3D scene. More powerful processors can render the scene in less time.
performance per watt
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
This means the CPU is more efficient, giving a greater amount of performance for each watt of power used.
Integrated graphics
GPU clock speed
497MHz
650MHz
The graphics processing unit (GPU) has a higher clock speed.
GPU turbo
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
1100MHz
When the GPU is running below its limitations, it can boost to a higher clock speed in order to give increased performance.
GPU execution units
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
A graphics processing unit (GPU) with a greater number of execution units can deliver better graphics.
supported displays
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Using multiple displays you can create a larger workspace, making it easier to work across multiple apps.
DirectX version
DirectX is used in games, with newer versions supporting better graphics.
OpenGL version
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
OpenGL is used in games, with newer versions supporting better graphics.
OpenCL version
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Some apps use OpenCL to apply the power of the graphics processing unit (GPU) for non-graphical computing. Newer versions introduce more functionality and better performance.
texture mapping units (TMUs)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
TMUs take textures and map them to the geometry of a 3D scene. More TMUs will typically mean that texture information is processed faster.
render output units (ROPs)
Unknown.
Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
The ROPs are responsible for some of the final steps of the rendering process, writing the final pixel data to memory and carrying out other tasks such as anti-aliasing to improve the look of graphics.
Memory
RAM speed
1600MHz
1600MHz
It can support faster memory, which will give quicker system performance.
maximum memory bandwidth
12.8GB/s
25.6GB/s
This is the maximum rate that data can be read from or stored into memory.
DDR memory version
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
DDR (Double Data Rate) memory is the most common type of RAM. Newer versions of DDR memory support higher maximum speeds and are more energy-efficient.
memory channels
More memory channels increases the speed of data transfer between the memory and the CPU.
maximum memory amount
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
The maximum amount of memory (RAM) supported.
bus transfer rate
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
The bus is responsible for transferring data between different components of a computer or device.
Supports ECC memory
✖AMD A4-5000
✖Intel Core i3-3130M
Error-correcting code memory can detect and correct data corruption. It is used when is it essential to avoid corruption, such as scientific computing or when running a server.
eMMC version
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
A higher version of eMMC allows faster memory interfaces, having a positive effect on the performance of a device. For example, when transferring files from your computer to the internal storage over USB.
bus speed
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
The bus is responsible for transferring data between different components of a computer or device.
Features
uses multithreading
✖AMD A4-5000
✔Intel Core i3-3130M
Multithreading technology (such as Intel’s Hyperthreading or AMD’s Simultaneous Multithreading) provides increased performance by splitting each of the processor’s physical cores into virtual cores, also known as threads. This way, each core can run two instruction streams at once.
Has AES
✔AMD A4-5000
✖Intel Core i3-3130M
AES is used to speed up encryption and decryption.
Has AVX
✔AMD A4-5000
✔Intel Core i3-3130M
AVX is used to help speed up calculations in multimedia, scientific and financial apps, as well as improving Linux RAID software performance.
SSE version
SSE is used to speed up multimedia tasks such as editing an image or adjusting audio volume. Each new version contains new instructions and improvements.
Has F16C
✔AMD A4-5000
✔Intel Core i3-3130M
F16C is used to speed up tasks such as adjusting the contrast of an image or adjusting volume.
bits executed at a time
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (AMD A4-5000)
Unknown. Help us by suggesting a value. (Intel Core i3-3130M)
NEON provides acceleration for media processing, such as listening to MP3s.
Has MMX
✔AMD A4-5000
✔Intel Core i3-3130M
MMX is used to speed up tasks such as adjusting the contrast of an image or adjusting volume.
Has TrustZone
✖AMD A4-5000
✖Intel Core i3-3130M
A technology integrated into the processor to secure the device for use with features such as mobile payments and streaming video using digital rights management (DRM).