Deciding Between Processors

[NiTeHaWk4787]

I'm going to be buyina a new computer sometime soon, and what processor do you think is better Intel or AMD, and I'm not sure how to look at AMD processors, but it looks like they dont go up to 2.5 GHz's

CPU Model CPU Clock Front-Side Bus Socket Slot Size of L2 Cache
XP-3200+ 2200 MHz 400 MHz Socket A 512 KB Barton
XP-3000+ 2100 MHz 400 MHz Socket A 512 KB Barton
XP-3000+ 2167 MHz 333 MHz Socket A 512 KB Barton
XP-2800+ 2083 MHz 333 MHz Socket A 512 KB Bartron
XP-2700+ 2167 MHz 333 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-2600+ 1917 MHz 333 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-2600+ 2133 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-2500+ 1833 MHz 333 MHz Socket A 512 KB Barton
XP-2400+ 2000 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-2200+ 1800 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-2100+ 1733 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-2000+ 1667 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-1900+ 1600 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-1800+ 1533 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-1700+ 1467 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-1600+ 1400 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
XP-1300+ 1333 MHz 266 MHz Socket A 256 KB
Duron™ 1.3GHz 1300 MHz 200 MHz Socket A 256 KB
Duron™ 1.2GHz 1200 MHz 200 MHz Socket A 256 KB
Duron™ 1.1GHz 1100 MHz 200 MHz Socket A 256 KB

thats information about AMD's.

[Tekmaven]

AMD Processors use a special numbering system called "PR Ratings". The PR Rating of an AMD Processor is "####+" number in the XP-####+ models that you've posted. These numbers are used to compare them to the P4 processors: an Athlon XP 3200+ would be equivlent to an Intel Pentium 4 3.2ghz processor.

Also, the processor's that you've listed aren't the latest offerings from AMD. The lastest desktop processor from AMD is called the AMD Athlon64, and at this point, you'd be much better off grabbing an Athlon64, if you were to go the AMD route.

[Catweazle]

Yep, the MHZ clockspeeds of different brand processors shouldn't be compared, because those processors work in different ways internally. If you compare, for example, an Athlon XP3200+ with a Pentium 4 3.2GHz processor, most reviews and benchmark tests indicate that the Pentium is a slightly better performer. Many users, however, would suggest that the Athlon is marginally better for games, while the Pentium is marginally better for applications processing. I'd personally tend to go with the opinion that the Pentium is the slightly better chip!

But as Tekmaven has indicated, newer motherboards and Athlon64 processors are the best of the lot, outperforming the Pentium 4s quite markedly, despite the fact that they also use a lower clockspeed!

An Athlo64 3200+ would be my personal processor of choice at present.

[NiTeHaWk4787]

Thanks, it'd mostly be used for gaming and video editing, so along with that a 9800PRO vid. card, the 9800XT is marginally better but considerably more expensive. Is there a big difference between the 128mb and 256mb 9800PRO cards?

[Catweazle]

No, there's very little difference between the versions.

256Mb display cards aren't really necessary for today's games, and by the time that amount of video RAM becomes necessary, today's display cards won't be powerful enough to run them anyway. The 256Mb versions are a marketting 'hook' more than anything else, and in some cases you'd find that they might even use slower RAM chips, which generate a drop in performance instead of an improvement.

I wouldn't bother with a 256Mb display card unless it's one of the 'new generation' Radeon X800 or NVidia 6800 cards!

[NiTeHaWk4787]

I was talking to some of my friends, and I'm leaning like 85% towards this http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=80717-R but one of my friends said wait for Intel to come out with the Pentium 5 which would be around 4.0 GHz. I reminded him its not all about GHz's but he said it'll be better anyway. What do you think?

[Catweazle]

I think Intel have quite a few problems on their hands!

The Prescott processors brought in all sorts of heat-related problems, and motherboard manufacturers are less than enthusiastic about the design changes Intel requires for them. Intel's talking about adopting mobile technology for future desktop processors but that's nothing more than talk yet, at least in terms of what you can actually purchase.

For now, AMD has the edge in terms of performance and also in terms of thermal issues. The processor you've linked is also the newer Socket 939 variety, which should also have about the best future-proofing capabilities of anything currently available. It'd be my choice for sure, was I to be upgrading at present.

[NiTeHaWk4787]

So its the 3500+ ill be getting then :) About another month or two