Intel Pentium 3805U socket: BGA 1168

What the Pentium 3805U is

The Pentium 3805U is the efficient dual core Pentium for thin laptops on BGA 1168. Intel set two cores and two threads at 1.9 GHz with 2 MB of cache. Power is 15 W on 14 nm from the first quarter of 2015. No turbo keeps power predictable.

The fixed clock suits single task office work and media playback. Two threads cover foreground apps with light background services. Battery stretches further than on i3 parts with turbo. Buyers find it in value ultrabooks where cost beats thread count.

HD Graphics from 100 MHz to 800 MHz drives the panel with 4K limitations of the era. DDR3L and LPDDR3 over two channels feed the system. The appeal is price with Pentium branding for retail shelves.

Socket and motherboard compatibility

The 3805U solders to BGA 1168 with thin cooling for 15 W. No upgrade exists. Retail buyers should weigh soldered RAM, since many value bodies lock memory alongside the CPU.

Broadwell-U mobile chipsets carry USB and SATA around the SoC. The LGA, PGA and BGA: CPU package types explained guide covers soldered design. Check storage type, since eMMC bodies feel slower than SSD bodies at the same CPU.

Memory, PCIe and cooling

DDR3L-1333 and 1600 and LPDDR3 to 16 GB over two channels fit value use. Four gigabytes covers kiosks, 8 GB suits home browsing. Dual channel helps the 800 MHz graphics peak.

PCIe 2.0 with 12 lanes serves Wi-Fi and storage. SATA SSD upgrades decide feel. A clean OS install helps dual cores more than on quads.

Cooling is a slim fan for 15 W. Quiet libraries suit the fixed clock. Heat soak trims little, since no turbo exists to lose.

Upgrade paths

No path exists on soldered boards. Step to the Intel Pentium 3825U for four threads at the same 1.9 GHz, or the Intel Core i3-5005U for HD 5500 graphics. All share BGA-1168.

A new laptop is the only move beyond. The How to find your CPU socket type guide confirms soldered value designs.