ThePentium Dual-Core brand was used for mainstreamx86-architecturemicroprocessors fromIntel from 2006 to 2009, when it was renamed toPentium. The processors are based on either the 32-bitYonah or (with quite differentmicroarchitectures) 64-bitMerom-2M,Allendale, andWolfdale-3M core, targeted at mobile or desktop computers.

In terms of features, price, and performance at a given clock frequency, Pentium Dual-Core processors were positioned aboveCeleron but belowCore andCore 2 processors in Intel's product range. The Pentium Dual-Core was also a very popular choice for overclocking, as it can deliver high performance (when overclocked) at a low price.

In 2006,Intel announced a plan^[1] to return thePentium trademark from retirement to the market, as a moniker of low-costCore microarchitecture processors based on the single-core Conroe-L but with 1 MB ofcache. The identification numbers for those plannedPentiums were similar to the numbers of the latter Pentium Dual-Coremicroprocessors, but with the first digit "1" instead of "2", suggesting their single-core function. A single-core Conroe-L with 1 MB cache was deemed as not strong enough to distinguish the planned Pentiums from the Celerons, so it was replaced bydual-corecentral processing units (CPU), adding "Dual-Core" to the line's name. Throughout 2009, Intel changed the name from Pentium Dual-Core to Pentium in its publications. Some processors were sold under both names, but the newer E5400 through E6800 desktop and SU4100/T4x00 mobile processors were not officially part of the Pentium Dual-Core line.

Intel Pentium Dual-Core processor family
Original logo	Rebranded logo	Desktop			Laptop
		Code-named	Core	Date released	Code-named	Core	Date released
		Allendale Wolfdale	dual (65 nm) dual (45 nm)	Jun 2007 Aug 2008	Yonah Merom Penryn	dual (65 nm) dual (65 nm) dual (45 nm)	Jan 2007 Nov 2007 Dec 2008
List of Intel Pentium Dual-Core processors

The first processors using the brand appeared in notebook computers in early 2007. Those processors, named Pentium T2060, T2080, and T2130,^[2] had the 32-bitPentium M-derivedYonah core, and closely resembled theCore Duo T2050 processor with the exception of having 1 MB ofL2 cache instead of 2 MB. All three of them had a 533 MHzfront-side bus (FSB) connecting the CPU with thedouble-data rate synchronous dynamic random-access memory (DDR SDRAM). Intel developed the Pentium Dual-Core at the request of laptop manufacturers.^[3]

Subsequently, on June 3, 2007, Intel released the desktop Pentium Dual-Core branded processors^[4] known as the Pentium E2140 and E2160.^[5] An E2180 model was released later in September 2007. These processors support theIntel 64 extensions, being based on the newer, 64-bitAllendale core withCore microarchitecture. These closely resembled theCore 2 Duo E4300 processor, with the exception of having 1 MB ofL2 cache instead of 2 MB.^[2] Both of them had an 800 MHzfront-side bus (FSB). They targeted the budget market above theIntelCeleron (Conroe-L single-core series) processors featuring only 512 KB of L2 cache. Such a step marked a change in thePentium brand, relegating it to the budget segment rather than its former position as a mainstream or premium brand.^[6]These CPUs are highlyoverclockable.^[7]

The mobile version of the Allendale processor, the Merom-2M, was also introduced in 2007, featuring 1MB ofL2 cache but only 533 MT/s FSB with the T23xx processors. The bus clock was subsequently raised to 667 MT/s with the T3xxx Pentium processors made from the same dies.

The 45 nm E5200 model was released byIntel on August 31, 2008, with a larger 2MB L2 cache over the 65 nm E21xx series and the 2.5 GHz clock speed. The E5200 model is also a highlyoverclockable processor, with many reaching over 3.75 GHz clock speed using just the stock Intel cooler. Intel released the E6500K model using this core. The model features an unlocked multiplier, but was only sold in China.

The Penryn core is the successor to the Merom core and Intel's 45 nm version of their mobile series of Pentium Dual-Core processors. The FSB is increased from 667 MHz to 800 MHz and the voltage is lowered. Intel released the first Penryn-based Pentium Dual-Core, the T4200, in December 2008. Later, mobile Pentium T4000, SU2000, and SU4000 processors based onPenryn were marketed as Pentium.

ThePentium Dual-Core brand was discontinued in early 2010 and replaced by thePentium name. The Desktop E6000 series and the OEM-only mobile Pentium SU2000, and all later models were always called Pentium, but the Desktop Pentium Dual-Core E2000 and E5000 series processors had to be rebranded.

Although using thePentium name, the desktop Pentium Dual-Core is based on theCore microarchitecture, which can be seen when comparing the specification to thePentium D, which is based on theNetBurst microarchitecture first introduced in the Pentium 4. Below the 2 or 4 MB of shared-L2-cache-enabled Core 2 Duo, the desktop Pentium Dual-Core has 1 or 2 MB of shared L2 Cache. In contrast, the Pentium D processors have either 2 or 4 MB of non-shared L2 cache. Additionally, the fastest-clocked Pentium D has a factory boundary of 3.73 GHz, while the fastest-clocked desktop Pentium Dual-Core reaches 3.2 GHz. A significant difference among these processors is that the desktop Pentium Dual-Core processors have aTDP of only 65 W while the Pentium D ranges between 95 and 130 W. The Pentium Dual-Core outperforms the Pentium D by a reasonably large margin despite the reduced clock speed and lower amounts of cache.

• Pentium
• List of Intel Pentium processors

• Computer-related introductions in 2006
• Intel x86 microprocessors

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