Choosing your processor guide

Choosing your processor

There are a variety of processors, and if you’ve done some shopping around, you will realise different computers have different internal components. The processor is one of the main parts you need to understand.

Rather than write the specifications of all the processors made, I am going to give you a brief explanation on what I have used, and what I recommend. Frankly I find it boring to write about processors, and I feel this is also boring to read. For that reason I will keep this part of the guide simplified.

The processor is the engine that drives the computer; much like an engine in a car, without one, the computer would be useless. The faster the processor, the better performance will generally be.

The speed of the computer is affected by many factors, however the processor clock speed plays a significant role in the computer speed. The clock speed is the rate at which the processor can access and process information. Information gets to the processor through the data bus. The bigger the bus, the more data it will and can carry. The speed of the bus is also measured in MHZ just like the computer processor.

As well as the above, there is cache that also affects the speed of a computer. The cache stores information temporarily so that the computer doesn’t have to search for the data the next time it is needed. Processors also come with a certain amount of cache speed and memory.

Some sites offer a detailed guide on various processor specifications, however I like to keep things simple for my viewers, so I am going to tell you what I have used and what I currently use.

Intel Vs AMD

The war has been going on a while now, and there is a large debate as to which is better. Intel processors are all of excellent quality, and they will likely last you ages, however AMD also offer this quality at a far lower cost.

I am currently using an AMD Athlon 2800 XP, and this has been superb. It offers excellent speeds and for the same speed in an Intel processor, the price tag would be significantly higher.

To summarize this part of the guide, if you can get Athlon for a cheaper price, do so, these processors are rapidly improving and the costs are low. Remember Intel are also excellent processor, and if you do happen to come across a system with an Intel processor at low price, then be sure to pick it up.

I prefer AMD because of the low price tags and remarkable speeds, however I have used Intel processors and still highly recommend them also. If money is no concern to you, then this is not a problem, however if budget is tight, stay with AMD.

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