IT Library
The Techno Zone
User Account
AMD K6-III
AMD announces the K6-III
On Feb. 22, AMD announced its fastest CPU yet, the K6-III. Early tests have shown that the new AMD processor, which costs slightly less than comparable chips from Intel, outperforms the Pentium II in general CPU performance, but is considerably slower in floating point calculations.
However, according to Ace's Hardware, the K6-III's weak floating point performance has been negated somewhat in gaming/video applications by the addition of a so-called Write Merge Buffer and improved L2 cache design. AH concludes that, while these improvements don't directly enhance FPU performance significantly, they do have an effect on the other aspects of any application using floating point instructions.
Refer to the following links for more information:
- ZDNET article: AMD K6-III
- AMD: K6-III FAQ
- CPUReview: K6-III
- Target PC: AMD's plans for 2000
AMD Athlon
Beyond the K6-III lies the Athlon -- a radically new design from AMD, which, up until now, has kept its designs compatible with the sockets used in Pentium-compatible PCs. The new chip, released in 1999 (after delays from its once-promised June delivery date) at speeds starting at 500 MHz, does not use an Intel Pentium- or Pentium II-design system bus. Thus, AMD has to persuade PC motherboard and companion chip vendors to build products based on this so-called "Slot A" design. So far, there have not been many of these boards available, with Asus taking a leadership position with its K7M and forthcoming K7V boards. Other Athlon motherboard manufacturers include Gigabyte, DFI, Soyo and MSI.
On Jan. 3, 2000, AMD is expected to release an 800 MHz Athlon and reduce prices on current parts.
More like this . . .
PowerPC 970
Introduction Even before their June 23rd announcement by Apple (following a widely reported leak the previous week!), it was well known that the next...Intel's P4-based Celeron
Intel released its first Celeron based on the Pentium 4 "Willamette" (Socket 478) pin design in May 2002, but performance is hurt by the...Intel CPU Upgrades
"Coppermine" Pentium 3 Abit mainboards are famous for their overclocking prowess, but many of the same feature that make them a tweaker's...Intel Pentium 4
Price cuts, new models announced; more price cuts coming
Pentium 4 price cuts, new models
Intel really, really wants you to make your next processor...
Post new comment