Evaluation
Now that I have drowned you in 1000 and 1 benchmark, the question remains what value AMD's new Athlon 1333 really represents. Do we need it right now?
Let's be frank, the times when we were asking for faster processors to improve the work with our daily applications is over. Word processors, spread sheet applications, presentation software and even 3D-games run just fine on any current processor with more than 800 MHz clock speed. It will be very difficult to notice a real difference between a Duron 800 and a Pentium 4 1.5 GHz when running common software. There is only a very small minority of people who really benefit from the added performance of the latest top-notch microprocessor.
The release of Athlon 1333 as well as the upcoming release of Pentium 4 1.7 GHz are important for only a small minority of users, but most crucial for AMD's and Intel's marketing departments. There is no reason to blame those companies for it, because it is all our fault. It's the people out there in front of the television and computer screens who conclude that only the company that makes the fastest microprocessor is able to make microprocessors good enough for them. It's like watching a boxing match. You want to see one guy win and you will disrespect the guy who loses, even though he could easily beat you to pulp within seconds.
Let's have a look at a little evaluation chart:
The overall score contains the four other scores in the following (arbitrary) weighing:
- 35% Office / Web
- 35% 3D-Gaming
- 20% Video
- 10% Professional OpenGL