Intel Celeron 2.40 socket: Socket 478

What the Celeron 2.40 is

The Intel Celeron 2.40 is a 2.4 GHz single-core value processor from March 2003. It runs one NetBurst Northwood core at 2.4 GHz with no Hyper-Threading, so 1 core gives 1 thread. Cache is 128 KB of L2 on a 130 nm process. Power is rated at 59.8 W in a Socket 478 package. The cpu_list 73 W value differs from the table 59.8 W, and the table value is used here.

The 2.40 uses a 400 MT/s front side bus with a 24x multiplier. Intel placed it above the 2.30 with the same 128 KB cache and a small power lift. The chip supports MMX, SSE and SSE2. Pentium 4 2.40B parts at the same 2.4 GHz offer 512 KB of cache with an 800 MT/s bus option as a larger lift, so cache and bus separate value from mainstream at identical frequency.

Modest power with a slow bus suits office towers. The 59.8 W envelope needs only a small Socket 478 cooler with normal airflow. That is why the 2.40 remained a common value replacement for slower Celeron parts.

Socket and motherboard compatibility

The Celeron 2.40 fits Socket 478 value desktops with a 400 MT/s bus and Northwood Celeron support. It needs a 478-pin board. The Socket vs chipset: what decides whether a CPU works guide covers pairing rules.

Office DDR towers are the natural match. Boards listing Northwood Celeron parts accept the chip with a 59.8 W cooler.

Memory, PCIe and cooling

Memory is DDR through the board chipset. The board sets speed and capacity.

A 400 MT/s bus ties the CPU to the chipset, while AGP handles graphics. No PCIe lanes originate on the die. Cooling uses the Socket 478 bracket with a 59.8 W heatsink.

Upgrade paths

On Socket 478 the steps are Celeron 2.60 and 2.70 Northwood parts. Pentium 4 2.40B parts add cache and bus speed as a larger lift. Beyond Socket 478 a move to LGA 775 needs a new board. The 2.40 lifts with the lever, so swaps need no solder work.