AMD Processors: Athlon 64 X2 4600+, Athlon 64 X2 4200+
Intel Processors: Pentium Extreme Edition 965, Pentium Extreme Edition 955, Pentium D 960, 950, 945, 920, 915
The difficulties in setting clear boundaries among dual-core processors become even tougher when you get to the "squishy middle" of the performance landscape. That's where the CPUs don't have the heft of the Core 2 Extreme or the FX-62, but aren't the clear bargain-basement parts you get with older, first-generation chips.
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• Introduction • Performance Dual-Core CPUs • Mainstream Dual-Core CPUs • Bargain Dual-Core CPUs • Single-Core CPUs • Quick Charts: Specs & Prices |
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While these processors won't satisfy uber-geeky gamers, they will perform sufficiently for the vast majority of users. We're talking people who run office productivity applications along with the heavy Web surfing that's become pretty much the norm, encompassing everything from MySpace social-networking to YouTube video-viewing. I categorize such usage as heavier than the so-called "everyday" basic computing, which can be handled by cheaper, low-end dual-core and single-core processors.
Most important, the mainstream dual-cores run more than sufficiently fast to enable you to upgrade your PC to Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system, without any hiccups, when that OS comes along next year.
Meet The CPUs
Intel Pentium Extreme Edition 965 and Pentium Extreme Edition 955: Like an academically advanced child who's overshadowed by a sports-star sibling, these two processors have gotten short shrift in the hubbub surrounding the Core 2 Duos. Both "Extreme" CPUs are members of Intel's 9XX family. However, they were introduced less than six months before the Core 2 Duos, so they didn't get much time to shine.
Their main negative is that they use Intel's original "bolted together" dual-core design. This places two separate single-core CPUs next to each other on a single silicon die. It's far less elegant than the from-the-ground-up dual-core architecture used in the Core 2 Duos. Neverthless, the 965 and 955 are solid performers. More important, now that they're effectively obsolete, you can get good deals (see price chart).
The Extreme Edition processors are based on the longtime NetBurst architecture used in most Pentiums. However, they add support for Intel's Hyper-Threading and hardware-assisted Virtualization technologies. The former makes it easy to run multiple threads, which means better multitasking performance. The latter, which was largely unsupported in Intel's first dual-core chips, lets users run whole operating systems and apps in separate partitions, turning one physical CPU into a couple of virtual processors.
However, it's important to note that while many users will take advantage of Hyper-Threading, they're unlikely to do much with Virtualization because it's not widely utilized by desktop operating systems.
Both the 965 and 955 are made using Intel's advanced 65-nm semiconductor fabrication process, upgrading them from the 90 nm used for the earlier 8XX line and putting them on par in that regard with the Core 2 Duos.
