What is the difference between an OEM CPU and a Retail Box CPU? Is it worth the savings in price to buy an OEM processor?

Thanks

With the retail package you'll get a 3 year warranty from the manufacturer and a HSF which is adequate as long as you don't plan to OC. With OEM you'll usually get a 15 or 30 day warranty and you'll have to buy a HSF, which offsets a lot of the difference in price between OEM and Retail.

My opinion is, go retail if you don't plan on OCing, go OEM and get a good HSF if you do want to OC.

"There's no such thing as gravity, the Earth just sucks"

The exception being Pentium 4s, which come with a great heatsink.

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Maybe that's why I couldn't find any OEM Northwood 1.6A in PriceWatch.

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Because of the heatsink? Doubt it, more likely that they're just too rare. Or perhaps Intel didn't release any OEMs?

<font color=blue>If you don't buy Windows, then the terrorists have already won!</font color=blue> - Microsoft

the price difference between the the oem and retail P4 1.6A is almost negible (like $15 at best)...i would suggest just getting the retail because not only does it have a great HSF...the fan is hideously quiet...

<b><font color=red>ATI</font color=red>'s drivers are like a broken faucet, they both keep on leaking...</b>