Celeron Vs. Pentium 4 - Similarities Galore
The technical details are pretty much the same for both processors. The Celeron supports all the features that Intel boasts in its marketing for the Pentium 4.
| Header Cell - Column 0 | Celeron | P4 Willamette | P4 Northwood |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clock Speeds | 1.7, 1.8 GHz | 1.4 - 2.0 GHz | 1.6 - 2.53 GHz |
| FSB Clock Speeds | 400 MHz | 400 MHz | 400, 533 MHz |
| L2 Cache | 128 kB | 256 kB | 512 kB |
| L2 Cache Clock | Full Processor Clock | ||
| Core Voltage | 1.75 V | 1.75 V | 1.5 V |
| Process | 0.18 µm | 0.18 µm | 0.13 µm |
| Socket | mPGA478 | mPGA478 | mPGA478 |
| Multimedia Extensions | MMX, SSE, SSE2 | ||
| Chipsets | Intel 845, 845D, 845E, 850, 850EVIA P4X266A, P4X333, P4X400SiS 645, 648ALi Aladdin P4 |
The reasons for switching the Celeron over to the P4 architecture are obvious. The low-cost processor now enjoys all the advantages that had previously been reserved for the P4. This includes the same large selection of chipsets and motherboards, and all the technological features - including the fast clock speeds that have proven to boost sales considerably. And the fact that more chips are being produced will also reduce the prices of all the surrounding components.
We'd also like to remind our readers that the performance of modern processors isn't determined by clock speed alone. AMD processors, for example, clearly out-perform their Pentium 4 rivals that run at the same clock speeds. A Pentium 4 running at 2 GHz is just as fast as an Athlon XP running at 1.6 GHz (2000+). There are differences in each case, depending on the individual application. You'll get similar results when you compare the Celeron and the Pentium 4.
