Labs

Intel's desktop Core 2 Duo range uses less power than its Pentium 4 and Pentium D processors and runs at lower clock speeds, but a superior architecture means it can process more information per clock cycle.

One of the main advantages is in the way the processor handles its cache. Instead of having a separate cache for each core, the cache is shared between both cores and is dynamically allocated so each core has the amount of cache it needs.

The Core 2 Duo processors achieved impressive scores in our benchmarks. The E6300 and E6400 outperformed their dual-core AMD rivals (the Socket AM2 Athlon X2 4200+ and X2 4600+) in the audio-encoding and image-manipulation tests. The Intel chips were significantly faster at video encoding, with scores of 215 and 243. The E6700 is incredibly fast, beating the vastly more expensive AMD FX-62 in all our benchmarks.

The Core 2 Duo E6300 and E6400 are faster than their similarly priced AMD rivals, while the E6700 is incredibly powerful for its price and wins a Best Buy award.