Sempron Is The New Duron
With the Duron removed from the portfolio for some time, the AthlonXP has inevitably become the value model. Today, this is increasingly turning into a problem for Athlon64, as this brand is intended to represent a top-notch product. With so many suffixes like XP, FX, SE, XT and others around, the average user does not necessarily realize that AthlonXP does not have much in common with Athlon64. As a consequence, AMD does not want to see the brand 'Athlon' in the value segment any more and decided to rename their non-premium processors.
As the focus of value systems is different from gaming or higher-end multimedia machines, this seemed to be an opportunity to adjust the speed rating according to the clock speed of the competitor, namely Intel Celeron D. The following table shows all available AthlonXP processors and the corresponding Sempron models.
| Clock Speed | AthlonXP | Sempron |
|---|---|---|
| 1.67 GHz | 2000+ @ FSB266Thorton & Thoroughbred-A | 2400+ @ FSB333Thoroughbred-B - Socket A |
| 1.75 GHz | Row 1 - Cell 1 | 2500+ @ FSB333Thoroughbred-B - Socket A |
| 1.80 GHz | 2200+ @ FSB266Thorton & Thoroughbred-A | 3100+ @ HT1600Paris - Socket 754 |
| 1.83 GHz | 2500+ @ FSB333Barton | 2600+ @ FSB333Thoroughbred-B - Socket A |
| 1.92 GHz | 2600+ @ FSB333Barton | Row 4 - Cell 2 |
| 2.00 GHz | 2400+ @ FSB266Thorton & Thoroughbred-B | 2800+ @ FSB333Thoroughbred-B - Socket A |
| 2.08 GHz | 2800+ @ FSB333Barton | Row 6 - Cell 2 |
| 2.10 GHz | 3000+ @ FSB400Barton | Row 7 - Cell 2 |
| 2.17 GHz | 2700+ @ FSB333Thoroughbred-B3000+ @ FSB333Barton | Row 8 - Cell 2 |
| 2.20 GHz | 3200+ @ FSB400Barton | Row 9 - Cell 2 |
It's pretty easy to see that AMD's value line does not reach high clock speeds, very likely in order to preserve the highest possible yield. Given these conditions we suppose AMD should be able to provide more AthlonXP based processors than ever before. However, the reason they're squeezing the production process is not only the fight against Celeron. The positive side effect of efficient output is receiving more free time that can be used for the production of Athlon64 cores, as introducing as many Athlon64 machines as possible is one of the most important objectives for 2004.
Left are the "old" ones, on the right we have the recycled cores. AthlonXP becomes Sempron without any changes, Athlon64 with removed 64 Bit capabilities is the top model for Socket 754.
