AMD: Athlon XP 1500+ Best Value
This index is calculated with the price in US$ divided by the score of Cinebench.
An entirely different pattern is shown in the AMD diagram. Here you'll also see that we've included the older top-of-the-heap Athlon 1400 - with the Thunderbird core. Compared to its performance, this Athlon 1400 is much too pricey. The best value is offered by the Athlon XP 1500+, which runs at a real clock speed of 1333 MHz. Compared to the Athlon 1400 (1400 MHz) it's a much better pick, particularly if you look at how it implements SSE commands. Even the Athlon XP 1600+, clocked at 1400 MHz, boasts better value compared to the Athlon 1400. The bottom line - stay away from the "old" Athlon 1400! The worst value is the Athlon XP 1800+, whose additional performance costs a pretty penny. Unlike the Intel processors, price increases linearly to performance, while the Pentium 4's bars show exponential leaps.
Athlon XP 1500+ Is The King Of The Hill!
This index is calculated with the price divided by the score of Cinebench.
The comparison of all the processors lays it all out - in terms of value, the AMD Athlon XP 1500+ can't be beat. Also interesting is a direct comparison of medium range Intel and AMD CPUs. Pentium 4/1700 and Athlon XP 1800+ are still good value, whereas the Pentium 4/1800 to 2000 are definitely too expensive for the performance you get. It offers much less value than any of the other processors.
However, you mustn't forget that if you're in the market for an AMD processor, be prepared to shell out at least 50 dollars for a powerful cooler. Cheap run-of-the-mill coolers costing as little as 15 dollars can only be used for speeds up to 1200 MHz.
