Best AM1 CPU In 2022 [4 Top Picks Reviewed]

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Asen Stoyanchev

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Asen is a Microsoft Certified Professional turned blogger with 10+ experience working in the IT industry as a hardware and software support engineer.

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Launched in the year 2014, AMD designed a socket for desktop SoCs in the value segment named Socket FS1b, which was later on rebranded as Socket AM1.

The main aim of the company behind AM1 was to serve that class of CPUs that has got a chipset as well as an integrated GPU, resulting in the formation of an entire SOC implementation.  

So, which CPUs are compatible with this AM1 socket?

Well, with the introduction of the AM1 socket, AMD also rolled out some compatible CPU chips under the Kabini family, which were based on Jaguar architecture. These CPUs, designated as APUs, were marketed under the names Sempron and Athlon. 

Hence, in this article, we have come up with an AM1 socket CPU list to help you choose the best AM1 CPU or FS1b socket processor.

Let’s begin!

Best AM1 CPU in 2022 – A Comparison Table

Image	Product	Features	Price
Editor’s Choice	AMD Athlon 5370 APU	CPU Speed: 2.2 GHz Cores/Threads: 4/4 With CPU cooler and heatsink	Check Latest Price
Premium Choice	AMD Athlon 5150 APU	CPU Speed: 1.6 GHz Cores/Threads: 4/4 With Hyper transport technology	Check Latest Price
Budget Choice	AMD Athlon 3850	CPU Speed: 1.3 GHz Cores/threads: 4/4/ With discrete GPU technology	Check Latest Price
Best Quad-Core Desktop Processor	AMD Athlon 5350	CPU Speed: 2.05 GHz Cores/threads: 4/4 With integrated DDR Memory controller	Check Latest Price

Best AM1 Processors Reviews

Editor’s Choice

10/10Our Score

• CPU Speed: 2.2 GHz
• Cores/Threads: 4/4
• With CPU cooler and heatsink

Now you can enjoy the incredible quad-core performance using AMD Athlon 5370 APU, which is supercharged with the Radeon R3 series integrated graphics.

If you want to use the flexible AM1 platform to the fullest, Athlon 5370 is amongst one of the most prominent processor AM1 for you.

The socketed AM1 motherboard is capable enough to improve small and sleek form factors with significant value. 

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The processor runs at a base speed of 2.2 GHz and has 2MB of cache, which can get all your work done smoothly without any lag.

The APU is built using the 28nm manufacturing process. It is based on Jaguar architecture belonging to the Kabini family, which is the APU line dedicated explicitly to the AM1 socket. 

Not only does the processor offers excellent working performance, but it also far exceeds expectations in the graphics department too. With its Radeon R3 graphics, it delivers accelerated HD playback and mesmerizing visuals. 

Its additional features include Video Codec Engine (VCE). This feature enables the user to enjoy media anywhere he wants as VCE makes fast encoding possible across multiple devices.

In the connectivity department, the APU supports lightning-fast SATA 6GBps as well as USB 3.0 connectivity.

To manage the flow of data at a memory bandwidth of 12.8GBps, the CPU supports DDR3-1600 memory with a single memory channel. 

Overall, AMD Athlon 5370 has everything that a decent AM1 CPU must possess. We also review another version of the Athlon in our extensive guide on the best CPU under 200 bucks in 2022.

Premium Choice

9.5/10Our Score

• CPU Speed: 1.6 GHz
• Cores/Threads: 4/4
• With Hyper transport technology

Now get a taste of accelerated PC speed and power using the AMD Athlon 5150 APU. This processor supports DirectX 11.2 and comes with AMD processor technology which gives your PC a complete boost. 

AMD Athlon 5150 is a quad-core processor running at an operating frequency of 1.6 GHz. It is sufficient enough to handle casual tasks along with usual applications conveniently.

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For making the system operations smooth, the processor is equipped with 2MB of dedicated L2 cache. 

With socket AM1 in place, you can expect high-speed interaction with the motherboard using this processor.

Additionally, with high-speed application management, Athlon 5150 delivers a crisp, cutting-edge graphics performance, too, using its AMD Radeon R3 graphics card. 

For ease in accessing content, whenever you need it, the processor supports USB 3.0 along with SATA 6GBps connectivity. 

As far as the OS is concerned, AMD 5150 can support Windows 8.1. It is also packed with lightning encoding capabilities using its Video Codec Engine (VCE). 

Budget Choice

9/10Our Score

• CPU Speed: 1.3 GHz
• Cores/threads: 4/4/
• With discrete GPU technology

AMD Sempron 3850 is also a Kabini processor, but it is the first desktop APU that was compatible with the AM1 socket. As it was one of the initial ones, the processor is somewhat decent when it comes to operating frequency,i.e., 1.3GHz. It is an exemplary quad-core processor with 2MB of L2 cache, which will serve you pretty good in handling the daily casual workload.

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Even it is the first SOC that comes with low power architecture. The TDP of this chip is only 25W, which makes it a power-efficient processor. 

The graphics are managed by AMD Radeon R3 integrated graphics card based on Sea Islands microarchitecture.

It is a suitable card that can deliver reasonable visual quality with a base frequency of 450 MHz.  Even you can expand your workspace by an additional display as the integrated graphics can support two displays. 

Coming on to the memory, the processor support DDR3 RAM running at a maximum memory speed of 1600MHz.

To keep the cooling at an optimum level, a fan and heatsink come with this APU. 

The additional peripherals of AMD Sempron 3850 include:

• PCI Express 2.0 interface with four lanes.
• Video Compression Engine 2.0.
• Universal Video Decoder 4.2
• USB 3.0 controller.
• SD controller.
• Serial ATA 3.0 controller.
• General purpose I/O.
• LPC bus.

Best Quad-Core Desktop Processor

8.5/10Our Score

• CPU Speed: 2.05 GHz
• Cores/threads: 4/4
• With integrated DDR Memory controller

AMD Athlon 5350 is a Jaguar microarchitecture based desktop processor. If you are looking for a budget-friendly System on Chip (SOC) processor which has a low power consumption, then this is the one for you. 

It is one of those processors that offer you CPU, GPU, along with I/O controller, all in one package.

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So, there is no need for you to invest some extra bucks on a dedicated chipset on a counterpart motherboard. This keeps the overall cost of building a CPU to the minimum. 

AMD 5350 is a processor that works on four computing cores with four threads and 128 Stream Processing Units.  And all of that impressive performance comes at a limited TDP of 25W. 

As it is AM1 compatible CPU, the flexible AM1 platform will give you the advantage of upgrading to a higher model, whenever available, to improve the overall performance. 

Using the AMD Radeon R3 integrated graphics card, you can enjoy sharp, vivid graphics with accelerated HD playback and top-notch everyday performance. 

Among its other dynamic features comes the Microsoft DirectX 11.2 and Windows 8.1 support along with Video Codec Engine (VCE) for fast encoding across devices.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is AM1 CPU good?

Socket AM 1 is the line of low-end SOCs which comes with integrated chipset and graphics. It is almost 7 years old AMD’s socket type with which the company released a total of 5 compatible APU processors.

It is still a good processor for low-intensity work, as most of the AM1 processors work at nearly 2 GHz and have quad-core processors.

The processor has one of the lowest TDP compared to modern-day CPUs, making it relatively easy to cool. The integrated graphics card is also pretty decent.

But, if you work on high-end resource-intensive applications along with multitasking, then the CPU and GPU power will turn out to be severely limited. Even AM1 CPUs lack HEVC video decoding. 

AM1 vs AM2- Which one is better?

AMD’s  AM2 socket was released in 2006, and approximately 8 years later, AM1 sockets were rolled out in 2014. 

 Socket AM2 was launched as a replacement for sockets 754,939 and 940. It is architectured with 940 pins, the same as 940, but supports the integrated dual-channel DDR2 memory controller. On the other hand, socket AM1 supports the DDR3 memory controller. 

AM2 supports HyperTransport 2.0, which results in limiting most of the processors to an operating frequency of 1GHz. Whereas, best AM1 processor operates at 2.2 GHz.

AM1 processors are quad-core, while socket AM2 initial processors were either single-core or dual-core. 

The AM2 sockets were based on 90nm technology, and later models flaunted 65nm technology. The socket AM1 was developed with 28nm technology.

In 2007, an upgraded version of socket AM2 was released, named Socket AM2+ which was physically the same. But it supported HyperTransport 3.0, resulting in an increased FSB speed of up to 2.6 GHz. 

However, as far as AM1 and AM2 sockets are concerned, there is no doubt AM1 is a better choice.

Is AM1 good for gaming?

There is no doubt that Socket AM1 CPUs are gloriously inexpensive, but we can’t ignore the fact that they are fairly slow and weak when it comes to running modern-day games such as “Call Of Duty Warzone“.

If it is for a less resource-intensive game such as ‘Dota 2″, for example, it will work. By the way, check out our guide on the best CPU for Dota 2 here.

If we pick Athron 5370, which has 4-cores and runs at an operating frequency of 2.2 GHz, light gaming can be reasonably expected.

For example, playing SuperTuxKart at 1080p while keeping the visuals at low settings. But, the traditional integrated graphics in AM1 CPUs will definitely come up short for the new games, and there is no solution for the lack of HEVC video decoding too. 

Conclusion

AM1 APUs are the traditional desktop SOCs. They are suitable for casual daily working, ordinary web browsing, and playing simple games. For limited work, it still has some worth in 2021, but nothing more than that.

Considering all the AM1 APUs, in our view, the best AM1 CPU is the AMD Athlon 5370 quad-core processor that can operate at a clock speed of 2.2 GHz.

In addition, the processor flaunts AMD Radeon R3 series integrated graphics card that can run at 600 MHz, offering a decent and vivid visual experience. It works at a TDP of 25W and supports DDR3-1600 MHz memory. As a sufficient cooling solution, the processor comes with a fan and heatsink.