High-Flying: AMD Athlon XP 3200+ Squares Off Against Intel P4 3 GHz

Zooming In On Technology: Thermal Power Loss And Voltages, Continued

In this the fastest, and probably last, Athlon XP, the maximum thermal power loss has hit a record high of 76.8 watts. Granted, the Intel Pentium 4 at 3 GHz is still the juggernaut of the x86 desktop world, racking up a sizzling 81.8 watts of power. AMD, however, has managed to trump its old "block heater" Thunderbird, which generated 73.5 watts, and the Thoroughbred "B," which produced 74.3 watts.

The number of transistors has stayed the same in the Athlon XP 3200+: 54.3 million of them, now with nine wiring levels since the last update. The competing Pentium 4 boasts 55 million transistors and six wiring levels. The new Athlon is still being provided with 1.65 volts.

BIOS settings in testing the Athlon XP 3200+.