Chip Brands Failing Intel, AMD

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A recent survey shows that the sheer amount of different brand names is extremely confusing to customers. Making matters worse, product brands were associated with the wrong manufacturer 17% – 50% of the time.

Core Duo, Core2 Duo, Pentium Dual Core, Fusion, CoreFusion. Confusion? That seems to be the mental state of consumers, based on a new report that says a dizzying array of chip brands isn't much help for buyers. Surprisingly, even tech savvy early adopters mix up all the monikers that Intel, AMD and others dream up, according to a survey conducted by market researcher In-Stat.
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The new alphanumeric numbering schemes implemented by several processor vendors appear to have accelerated this trend."
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I concur..especially with the numbering branding scheme causing the confusion to accelerate the problem.

Which is better.. a T7200 or an E6850 ? Numbering and "hierarchy" would make one THINK that a T is better than an E and 7200 must be faster than 6850, right? Of course, that's wrong. X6800 or Q6600?

I also think the "Core2" name confuses people in so much that they'll think core2 means dual core, and Core means single, where Core2 could also mean QUAD, and core could also mean dual core or single core.

"Core Solo" "Core 2 Solo" "Core 2 Duo" "Core Duo" "Core 2 Quad"

*I* understand that Core is an architecture, and core2 is a revision of that architecture, much like pentium versus pentium2, but johnny quarterback doesn't.

Processors should be marketed differently to be less confusing, and DESPITE what they say, the SPEED should be part of the #
 
I thought Intel seemed to want confusion once AMD started whupping them so bad and they had to disenage from the mhz identity crescendo that they had used for so long. You could read a review about how how AMD cpu X crushed Intel CPU y but because the names and sequences were eventually made so hard to manitain an identity for it was like no bad rep could stick to a moving target. Intel broke up that Pentium recognition identity for good reason. Now things seem to be about cores and multiples. An "enthusiast" knows how to identify a superior cpu but a casual person in a store might think they have the same thing because they see "dual core". Next year it will be qaud core. Then Intel skulltrail hits and it will be dual quad core cpu's. You can have great cpu and know it - and you can have a lesser one - and not know it - but think your shaking with latest and greatest.
 
I buy/sell/build and support computers, so people ask me quite often what is better. Desktop processors are not too terribly confusing :( , but mobile chips are just silly. Put the speed back into the name so I don't have to have a chart to tell me the speeds when looking at what to buy. :confused:
 
It's not the fact that the speed's not in the name anymore, and I'm very glad that's the case... clock speed is only an indicator of speed relative to other processors of the same line... it doesn't even hold true for processors of the same brand. There's a reason both sides decided to drop it.

There's a couple problems, though by far the most important one is the fact that they just make too damn many different processors.

Why the hell does intel need TEN different Core 2 Duo desktop processors? or SEVENTEEN mobile Core 2 Duo processors? That's not even including the quad/single core processors. They need 3. Low end, mid end, high end. Then you could call them whatever you want, and people would know that an XYZ Economy was the low end, plain XYZ was the regular one, and XYZ Extreme was the high end. You then have a mobile line of processors with the same 3 steps, just add mobile. Car makers know this, and don't have a dozen different versions of the same car, each with 5 extra horsepower than the lower end one.

As for other chipsets... come on, no one outside of hardcore hardware sites like [H] has any idea about motherboard chipsets. Hell, even I have to do a ton of research when I'm building my computer to figure out what motherboard chipset (not to mention brand) is good, and I read [H] every day. It doesn't help when all the motherboard chipsets are like P365, P456 and i666 or whatever.

Put a little time and effort into designing your product well in the first place and you won't need revision after revision after revision.

-Nate
 
I tend to agree with Nate to a point. 3 is a little sparse, but it would make a good starting point. They could have three ranges, and then all of the other variances are "options." Do you want the 4MB L2 Cache option? 1066MHz FSB option? That's the way automobile lines do it...you have a base model and then options make the number of possibilities huge, but not as confusing as even the current state of processors. MINI's site boasts that there are over 130 Trillion possible combinations, and it's not half as confusing as Intel's lineup.

It could be similar to configuring a computer from an OEM, and integrated right into that system. When you price out a Dell or whatever, you add on the options you want. These are just more options. I think that would be a hell of a lot simpler.
 
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