2011-01-04, 23:59
Who/What:
I'm in the research stage for a new build. I quickly realised that a lot has changed since the last time I looked deeply into hardware. (Apparently AMD socket A circa 2002 isn't all the rage any more.) Being someone with more time than money, I decided to compare the 20 cheapest dual core processors on Newegg.com
Why:
Anything on this list should be more than enough to effectively run xbmc, but in my particular case I'm spec'ing a desktop that will likely find its way in front of a tv in the next few years, so I'm thinking ahead. I quickly discovered that AMD and Intel both have really confusing hierarchy's for their product lines. Many similar names for different lines without clear distinction of how they compare.
How:
I referenced the newegg.com website for current prices and cpubenchmark.com for the comparison stats. Some of the results are as expected, some I was a bit surprised by. Performance doesn't always follow price, clock speed, or Manufacturer.
Note:
This comparison does not take into account overclockability, or real world power draw.
Care to expand on my work? Here's the spreadsheet.
I'm in the research stage for a new build. I quickly realised that a lot has changed since the last time I looked deeply into hardware. (Apparently AMD socket A circa 2002 isn't all the rage any more.) Being someone with more time than money, I decided to compare the 20 cheapest dual core processors on Newegg.com
Why:
Anything on this list should be more than enough to effectively run xbmc, but in my particular case I'm spec'ing a desktop that will likely find its way in front of a tv in the next few years, so I'm thinking ahead. I quickly discovered that AMD and Intel both have really confusing hierarchy's for their product lines. Many similar names for different lines without clear distinction of how they compare.
How:
I referenced the newegg.com website for current prices and cpubenchmark.com for the comparison stats. Some of the results are as expected, some I was a bit surprised by. Performance doesn't always follow price, clock speed, or Manufacturer.
Note:
This comparison does not take into account overclockability, or real world power draw.
Care to expand on my work? Here's the spreadsheet.