Tom's Hardware's 2007 CPU Charts

FSB1333 Intel Processors & New 2007 CPU Charts

While Intel is shrinking and thus basically face-lifting its successful Core 2 family, AMD is working on a more substantial strike. New quad core and dual core processors called Phenom X4 (code-named Barcelona) and Phenom X2 are on the way, to fight back against the current Core 2 dominance. Unfortunately, AMD is under extreme time pressure: every day that it lacks a competitive product, it loses money and market share to Intel. Once again, AMD won't introduce desktop processors right from the beginning, rather focusing first on Opteron branded server chips. For this reason, many people assume that AMD might miss the holiday shopping season, which could have made up for the months-long bleeding.

Recent price drops have stirred up the processor market quite a bit. On the one hand this is good, as it means that users get much more performance for the buck when compared to half a year ago. You can easily get a dual core processor for less than $100 today, or entry-level CPUs for as little as $35. On the other hand, it has made it impossible for non-enthusiasts to classify processors: performance differences and price differences, combined with the numerous price drops, often leave a distorted picture of the marketplace. We will discuss the most important technical characteristics of AMD and Intel processors, go over recommended platforms, and then jump into the most comprehensive CPU comparison project on the Internet: the Tom's Hardware CPU Charts.

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Patrick Schmid
Editor-in-Chief (2005-2006)

Patrick Schmid was the editor-in-chief for Tom's Hardware from 2005 to 2006. He wrote numerous articles on a wide range of hardware topics, including storage, CPUs, and system builds.