Some old noobie questions..

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KublaKhan

Limp Gawd
Joined
Feb 27, 2004
Messages
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Reading reviews about dual core, tri-core, quad cores @ 2.7GHz, 2.9GHz, 3.1GHz etc. etc. has gotten me a bit fried..

Considering that the most intenstive thing I do with my computer is watch movies, play poker, webcam / IM, burn CDs, read e-mail and surf the web, what should I really look for?

More cores? or more GHz?

I'm doing some research and I've semi-settled on the Athlon II X2 250 Dual Core Regor 3.0GHz Socket AM3, at NewEgg.com, it's selling for a mere $64.99...

However...

For a measly $4 more, there's a Phenom X3 8750 Toliman 2.4GHz Socket AM2+ - Triple Cores, but less GHz. If I understand correctly, the Athlon II doesn't have any L3 Cache, whereas the Phenom does, which, should make the Phenom faster, yes?

And before anyone mentions it.. that beautiful Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition 3.2GHz Socket AM3 Dual-Core with the ability, with the right MB, to unlock to Quad Core @ $100.99 which I drool over, but its out of my price range... I'm just using these three CPUs for examples in Cores/GHz, would like some opinions on what you think, as I know my mileage will vary depending on what I eventually decide.
 
From what you've said so far, just about any dual-core CPU, regardless of GHz, will be enough for your needs.

Oh and stick with the X2 250.
 
yup, the 250 is more then enough

and while the x3 toliman might look nice, it actually isnt that good of a chip, it is an old 65nm phenom I, with a full quad-core die, so it will suck about twice as much power as the x2 250.

And as Dany says, the 250 will be more then enough for your usage. If you absolutely want an extra core, get the x3 435
 
dont touch that x3 toliman...get that Athlon II X2....a better chip, and will suit your need perfectly
 
everyone has pretty much summed it up.. the athlon II x2 250 with an AMD 785G motherboard(if you dont already have a motherboard) is your best choice.. and if the stock speed isn't enough it only takes about 2-3 minutes to overclock it a little bit to get some more out of the processor.. but for what you do 3ghz is plenty..

as far as the phenom I x3 goes.. its a pile of crap.. while yes it does have L3 cache.. it doesnt have enough to make a difference.. it also has a horrible voltage leak and doesnt overclock for anything.. the athlon II 250 should beat it in almost every benchmark..
 
I think the other thing you should look at is power consumption......Go for whatever takes the lowest power and you should be set. You might even want to try an atom/ion box prior to plunking down money for a modern cpu and see if it fits your needs. My brother did the same & he loves his atom/based box.
 
Thanks for the information gentlemen and to DrFreeze for the nod at the x3 435, it's priced just $10 more than the 250 for an extra core.

Back to reading reviews and comparing these two... by the time I'm ready to pull the trigger everyone will be using HexCores.. :p
 
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