Digg - AMD Sneak Peeks Phenom II, Overclocks To 5+GHz

166 Comments
Who Dugg It?

AmyVernon, on 11/21/2008, -3/+38Very cool, first look at this...
- RaulMuadDib, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Literally, very cool.
- sampanc, on 11/21/2008, -1/+8So I have to get a new desktop computer... AMD or Intel?
  - azreal156, on 11/21/2008, -1/+20AMD, not because they're better or worse than Intel, but because you have to keep the competition alive to keep prices down.
  - Hollow5, on 11/21/2008, -6/+7you game? intel.
  - MiGs2, on 11/21/2008, -3/+10Intel Hyperthreatening Core i7 FTW!
  - theguesser10, on 11/21/2008, -2/+14AMD because their best processor is cheaper than Intel's mid-range processors.
  - sampanc, on 11/21/2008, -2/+4I might be doing some gaming but nothing like "Crysis". I find AMD based computers to be priced cheaper compared to the equivalent Intel versions but I am told that AMDs tend to overheat moreso than Intel thus one of the reasons that makes them less reliable. How true is that? I'm finding similar theories on Google but I'm guessing since I won't be doing hardcore gaming the AMD will do just fine and I can save a couple hundred $$$.
  - HonoredMule, on 11/21/2008, -1/+12I have 4 AMD computers, and not a one has the slightest stability or performance issues. The ones with good video cards play Crysis or any other game just fine.
    
    Gaming and stability are not legitimate reasons to fork over the extra cash for Intel systems--the only benefit is additional power that isn't needed or used. For a real difference, put the cash you save into the video card.
  - KibibyteBrain, on 11/21/2008, -0/+5You will get more bang for the buck with AMD but if you have plenty of cash or wish to upgrade your CPU often you might want to go Intel.(since they are now committed to a new socket/chipset and will likely have the best upgrade schedule) Its also worth considering the other components in your system. If you can't find any stellar motherboards or they are too expensive, you might want to consider the other maker.
  - smotpoker, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3The high-temp issue ended with the XP series. Before that, and even a while afterward, they outperformed Intel across the board (no pun intended :P) despite being half the price. This made them worth the extra $10 spent on a good CPU cooler and is the main reason they gained such a fan base.
    
    These days Intel performs better but not enough to justify the price difference. Plus considering how they are able to compete so well with so few resources, it is better to give them whatever boost we can, IMO. They were the first 64bit cpus and, iirc, multicores, too.
  - kronix2, on 11/21/2008, -1/+3Right now, it's definitely Intel for the mid-to-high end and enthusiast segments. AMD simply doesn't have anything which can compete against the Q6xxx, E7xxx, E8xxx or Q9xxx series of Core 2s.
    
    The Core i7s aren't any better for games, and are a LOT more expensive than building a system around a Q9550; the Core i7's biggest competitor isn't AMD, but Intel's own 45nm Penryn Core 2 Duos/Quads, which are dirt cheap and overclock like mad.
- talonh, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Very cool, can't wait until the information...
- djbon2112, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3AMD's getting back into the game! Go AMD!
- ProfessorLX, on 11/21/2008, -2/+2didnt they do this on a q6600 on toms hardware like 6 or 8 months ago?
- latrosicarius, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1Its not a very complete first look... they said absolutely nothing on this processor's GPU abilities.
  
  Also, any info on dragon-based opterons? Does the integrated GPU take away resources from generic processing instructions? (something that wouldn't be too ideal for servers)
  - lyssword, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4.... wow you completely don't know what you're talking about, this doesn't use integrated gpu, in headlines it says "phenom / 4800 radeon graphics.
  - latrosicarius, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1thank you
BrokebackCasket, on 11/21/2008, -1/+13Nice combination. Worth checking out if I get the opportunity.
mrcaulfield, on 11/21/2008, -8/+24Austin: a very good reason to come to Texas, and maybe even live there.

Stereotype all you want, but I do love my home state.

: )
- elvenseven, on 11/21/2008, -2/+10But would it run crysis :)
- jojothepirate, on 11/21/2008, -2/+6Texas is the best good sir!
  - ayeroxor, on 11/21/2008, -1/+3It's what kind of good sir?
    
    /ahh, punctuation...
- Elranzer, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4I so wanna move to Austin. That or Portland (OR), but I'm leaning Austin.
  
  New York is just becoming way too expensive, ghetto and snooty.
  - uknowwhoibe, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3Austin is an amazing town to live in. It doesn't have the normal connotations that Texas has.
gamebittk, on 11/21/2008, -5/+58inb4 crysis
- damndj, on 11/21/2008, -5/+102L8
  - handheldchimp, on 11/21/2008, -2/+15umm...no he's not. The people that replied above him replied at a later time, therefore he is still inb4 crysis.
- paradigm1220, on 11/21/2008, -3/+4Go back to 4chan
  - damndj, on 11/21/2008, -1/+3no u
wondertwins, on 11/21/2008, -5/+12very impressive processor. This thing will destroy crysis. It will be more like: Will crysis play on this machine?
- vawksel, on 11/21/2008, -0/+10Check your CPU usage when playing the game (window mode it if you want). CPU isn't the problem, it's the graphics card.
  
  Will the Radeon 4800 be fast enough? Who knows.
  - wondertwins, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1still, u cant play this game with a pentium 4 proccessor with high settings can u not?
  - vawksel, on 11/21/2008, -2/+2@wondertwins
    
    I don't think crytek uses all that much CPU, very few games do. This is not a benchmark by any means, but World of Warcraft in a city like Shatrath with 200 people on the screen, my 2.4ghz core 2 duo will be at like 5% usage. Crytek maybe uses 15% i'd guess.
    
    Games just don't use that much CPU, it's almost all the graphics card that's the problem.
- Noodleson, on 11/21/2008, -2/+1I bet this thing destroyers folding@home
- uknowwhoibe, on 11/21/2008, -1/+2***** you, two of my Crysis discs fried trying to run this processor.
oxphantomxo, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4Cant wait to get my hands on one.
- sirjohnmichalot, on 11/24/2008, -1/+1That's what she said
damack, on 11/21/2008, -1/+354GHz with air is very impressive I'm looking forward to seeing the benchmarks information is spreading like wildfire at the moment but its incredibly conflicting so I have no idea what to think.
- Psythik, on 11/21/2008, -2/+8Not really; my E8400 is running @ 4GHz on air...
  - pdusen, on 11/21/2008, -9/+1I'll believe THAT when I see it.
  - Genma, on 11/21/2008, -1/+2plus the title fails to mention 5 ghz was achieved with *LN2*... wasn't this done on p4 a long time ago?
  - Smills, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6That's a dual core...
  - djbon2112, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1For an AMD this is an achievement, considering old records were on the ~3.5GHz range.
- digitallysick, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1My Q6600 Intel overclocked on air at 3.5ghz, i imagine had i bought the next up processor i could of hit 4ghz without issue.
- Maurik, on 11/21/2008, -0/+8"On air, the Phenom II X4 was able to hit around 4GHz at 1.55V with 32ºC temps."
  
  32°C!!!! No way that Intel chips can do that.
  
  Well done AMD
deepleet, on 11/21/2008, -1/+12Is this going to be competing with Core i7?
- handheldchimp, on 11/21/2008, -14/+17Im pretty sure this is going to be kicking Core i7's ass.
  - iofthestorm, on 11/21/2008, -0/+27I wouldn't be too sure, although as an AMD user I am hopeful. If it's good enough I might upgrade my Athlon 64 X2, although since I'm really not stressing it at all I don't think I really need to.
    
    The thing is, Core2 has been kicking AMD's ass for so long, and Core i7 makes Core2 look silly. Also, the 5+ghz in the title is kind of ridiculous as that was with LN2, and practically anything with LN2 will overclock way above stock speeds. Whether you can even get it to run long enough to run a benchmark is another story.
  - chaosblade77, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4Said they had it stable at 5GHz+ and booted at 6GHz. That made it sound like they could get a benchmark at 5+.
    
    Anyway, I'd like to see this thing compete well with i7. AMD has been "behind" since they introduced AM2, I'd like to see them pick it up and compete a bit more.
- cowsgonemadd3, on 11/21/2008, -1/+14What if Core i7 does not have a donkey? What if it has a cow?
- vietnamerican, on 11/21/2008, -9/+6It'll probably kick Core i7's kid's ass
  - mypetridish, on 11/21/2008, -9/+2haha u didnt get it. but we understand, looking at where you're coming from
  - vietnamerican, on 11/24/2008, -0/+0yeah, I got it. A Kid is a newborn donkey
0260, on 11/21/2008, -0/+20Impressive. more impressive is that you can put that in your socket am2 motherboard
- lordtyros, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4AM2+ only
  - evilesttoast, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7There are updates for a lot of mobos out there for AM2+...I'm just afraid of bricking mine...
- iofthestorm, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Caveat: Not all motherboards support higher wattage processors. I've got an AM2 690G chipset motherboard and it only supports up to 95W CPUs, and the Phenoms with comparable clock speeds to my X2 are all 125W.
  - dbzssj44676, on 11/25/2008, -0/+1Are you sure? I run the same chipset and according to gigabyte my board is capable of running the 140w 6400 black, even with the total lack of a heatsink on the VRMs, but I'm not capable of running any x4 over a 9750 because the hyper transport speed bumps from 3600mhz to 4000mhz beyond that model.
    
    Mind you, I haven't tried it. I run an 89w 5200+ Windsor on a GA-MA69G-S3H.
- krische, on 11/21/2008, -4/+6Yeah, if it was intel they would make it a new socket and make you buy a new motherboard just to use it.
  - Giga, on 11/21/2008, -3/+1How many sockets has Intel gone through in the last 5 years? How many has AMD gone through? I think you will find AMD has gone through a lot more.
  - kronix2, on 11/21/2008, -1/+3You're wrong.
    
    Intel have used Socket 775 for consumer CPUs between February 2004 and November 2008. That's four years and nine months.
    
    AMD have used Socket AM2 since May 2006, introduced the mid-migration AM2+ not so long ago, and will now migrate to AM3 in Q1 2009. Assuming a February 2009 launch, that'll be exactly two years and nine months - and that's with AM2+ sandwiched in-between.
    
    Inte's Socket 775 lifetime as the highest-end socket: 4 years, 9 months.
    AMD's AM2(+) lifetime as the highest-end socket: 2 years, 9 months.
  - narlzac85, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1if you have a socket 775 from 2004, you CANNOT use any core2 models anyway. So it should have been a new socket simply to keep the uninformed people from trying to put a CPU into a motherboard that would not take it. Hell, even a motherboard that can take a conroe (at conroe's launch) most likely will not work with a wolfdale based cpu. So yet another case when they should have changed sockets. Of course, you can still use a 775 P4 in a brand new system, but who cares, thats just silly considering how cheap the Pentium Dual-Core or newer Celerons are (and much faster than a P4 too).
    
    The reason not all 775's are the same is the same reason not at AM2/AM2+'s are the same. The voltage regulators are were not made to handle the stresses of a new/more power hungry cpu. The socket doesn't have all that much to do with guaranteeing compatibility which is why everyone should be encouraged to check a cpu compatibility list before attempting a cpu/motherboard combo.
cathpah, on 11/21/2008, -1/+16that's ***** insane.

in before ridiculous fanboy *****. Doesn't matter what brand we're talking about....this is cool, and means the competitors will be following very soon.
handheldchimp, on 11/21/2008, -2/+68Chip Wars Episode V: AMD Strikes Back
- Schmich, on 11/21/2008, -0/+10Chip Wars Episode I: The Phenom Menace
- renegadeafk, on 11/21/2008, -3/+1Chip Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Phenom
Kiggold, on 11/21/2008, -0/+77On air, the Phenom II X4 was able to hit around 4GHz at 1.55V with 32ºC temps.

Sold me!
- nomadgf, on 11/21/2008, -0/+10I second that motion.
- cowsgonemadd3, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7All in favor say "I".
  - passedoutghost, on 11/21/2008, -0/+12l
    
    lol I lied, I said "L"!
  - jordn, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1Nay!
    
    *ducks*
  - belumaves, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1i7? oh wait, wrong company.... :)
- DeFex, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4yeah and only 7 degrees warmer on water ?
  i think it might be a misprint.
  - drewh1991, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4Yeah I was wondering that too.
- drewh1991, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7"Aye!"
- iofthestorm, on 11/21/2008, -1/+16I love AMD CPUs, and that is pretty awesome, but keep in mind that these are done by AMD itself. I'd wait until some CPUs get into independent testers' hands to see how they really do. Also, I haven't paid much attention to the Intel side but I'm pretty sure Wolfdale Core2Duos can hit 4ghz on air easily, and I think I've heard of Q6600s getting that high without too much trouble as well.
- krische, on 11/21/2008, -0/+5So where do we get the Liquid Nitrogen cooling system? Over 5GHz?!
  - handheldchimp, on 11/21/2008, -1/+5ITSOVER9000!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  - HonoredMule, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7Processors have run at over 9000 hz for a VERY long time. ;)
  - ParaSwarm, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1You can say 9 ghz instead of 9000 hz; we promise we won't be less impressed.
  - specialK16, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1@ParaSwarm: It doesn't work like that.
- Exilon, on 11/21/2008, -0/+131.55V on a 45nm process will kill the CPU within weeks if not days.
  
  Oh yes, they will sell it to you - multiple times.
- digitallysick, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1that 1.55 vcore seems a bit scary
- FuckTheNWO311, on 11/21/2008, -0/+0At 1.31V my current 3.0GHZ X2 runs at about 42 degrees...with custom cooling...I can't wait for the Phenom II !!!!!
bxbomber, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3Nice if it's cheap and can somewhat compete with the new intel chips I might make my next pc an amd
darkNiGHTS, on 11/21/2008, -0/+33Even though AMD has been behind in the past few years, I've still been partial to them remembering the Socket 939 days. I can't wait for their return.
- lordtyros, on 11/21/2008, -2/+14I like AMD processors because they are cheap as dirt. $70 for a dual core processor that can handle any modern game? Sign me up.
  
  Protip: In gaming, the GPU is typically much more important than the CPU is. Skimp on CPU and buy a better GPU. If you play at resolutions greater than 1024 x 768, that is. And if you don't, you shouldn't consider yourself a PC gamer.
  - HangerBaby, on 11/21/2008, -2/+7Yeah but the new I7 is going to change the CPU vs GPU battle..
    
    a little inside knowledge points to intel saying that they want the CPU and GPU to be the same thing... One giant processing unit, that does both. (I think its a bad idea because then upgradability goes down while prices sky rocket)
  - HonoredMule, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4I'm pretty sure that these days most people, "gamers" or not, use the resolution of their flat panel.
    
    P.S. I'm pretty sure more gamer cred goes to the people who focus on things like gameplay, mechanics, and content rather than mere presentation--unless your definition of gamer is just a preteen with a copy of Halo 2.
- evilesttoast, on 11/21/2008, -0/+5I went with AMD, after building my most recent PC. Gambled on it, but now its paid off :D
- cowsgonemadd3, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6I still have a AMD 3200 939 in both my laptop and my desktop. Its time to upgrade....
- bonds, on 11/21/2008, -0/+5Hell I'm still running a 939 Opteron 165. I've got it running at 2.8 ghz, really see no need to upgrade right now. Only thing I'm lacking unfortunately is support for ddr2 :-/
  - Compactman, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1screw DDR2. I just tell everyone I'm waiting for the next generation USB 3.0, DDR3, and applications that actually make use of multithreading. So like.... maybe by feb buy a new one lol.
  - HangerBaby, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1I remember when my Sempron out performed any intel processor on the market in regards to gaming. A budget AMD running quicker than expensive intel stuff. Great technology
- 1310nm, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1I've been partial to them since the K6 days, but I bought Intel for my latest upgrade. AMD has to innovate and actually outperform Intel.
TehProphet, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6Hell it's about time AMD got back in the game. I have an athlon 64 3500+. I am building a new computer next summer, so I hope AMD has some good CPUs out by then, I was planning to go with intel the way things have been lately..
- krische, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7Article says the Phenom II should be out by January, with plans of support for DDR3. So looks like you'll be fine by summer.
- Defiant001, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2I used to have a 3500+, that was a dam good processor!
InfernoX, on 11/21/2008, -2/+14The most interesting part is that it'll be compatible with current AMD motherboards( atleast the one chip will be).

Big advantage over the i7 lineup I'd say.
- HonoredMule, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3Huge. I have 5 computers at home, and 3 of them already can take the Phenom II if I ever feel a need for more processing power.
- paradigm1220, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1So to be clear, the AM3 is backwards compatible with AM2+ socket?
  - nullity, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1"So to be clear, the AM3 is backwards compatible with AM2+ socket?"
    
    No, but if you read the article, you'll see that there will be both AM2+ and AM3 versions of the Phenom II.
shamanking911, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3holy *****
Hollow5, on 11/21/2008, -11/+2the "DRAGON". oh how witty and innovative you are AMD, you looked bad enough with the "SPIDER" but good luck with that.
- Chalks777, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4I like my computer to have (a) class. I like Spider class, but I can't wait to upgrade to Dragon. Who wants to name my future dragon?
  
  Yes. My computer has a name.
jojothepirate, on 11/21/2008, -0/+10Yes now my fanboy tattoo is justified!!!!!!
- drewh1991, on 11/21/2008, -1/+5Please don't tell me you got an AMD tatoo.
  - Chalks777, on 11/21/2008, -0/+7you mean "PLEASE TELL ME YOU GOT AN AMD TATTOO!"
    
    Right?
  - silenceissexy, on 11/21/2008, -4/+0No.
- iofthestorm, on 11/21/2008, -1/+10Umm, I hate to say this, but...
  
  Pics or it didn't happen!
- lkms, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1only like the broken clock
flessa, on 11/21/2008, -0/+18I just got an Asus M3A79-T (with a 5600+ X2, radeon 4870) and its all ready for the "Dragon" platform. This is why I like AMD and their upgrade paths, because all I will have to do is pop a new Phenom II into the AM2+ socket and like that I'm in the running with Core i7s without upgrading my entire system.
- Chicken, on 11/21/2008, -2/+6Actually AMD has changed sockets more than Intel in the past 4-6 years.
  - thallenthur, on 11/21/2008, -0/+6That's right but people were still forced switch to newer motherboards. C2D are not compatible with i925 chipsets for example even though they share the same pin layout.
Resiroth, on 11/21/2008, -0/+30Not so fast, comparing different architectures of processors is not really possible.
GHZ is not nor will it ever be an indication of a processors performance. They say they've made these improvements to the cache etcetera but let's just wait till we see the benchmarks first. That said, I really hope AMD pulls off a win here. Intel has been dominating high end for quite some time now and competition is always a good thing. Hopefully this will make intel pull an nvidia and drop the prices on core i7.
- 1310nm, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4Exactly; Intel put a memory controller on-chip for i7, and that's probably giving them most of the speed boost over Core 2 chips.
- Elranzer, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4On-chip memory controller has been on AMD for some time, now.
- cgoff, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2It's true that MHz/GHz aren't always a factor anymore, but it certainly helps single-threaded applications. That's why AMD has a chance at this generation, if the single-threaded applications perform better than the i7 there is no reason to go for the more expensive platform for the average user through the power user.
bennovw, on 11/21/2008, -1/+74 Ghz on air? I'm sold!
- mypetridish, on 11/21/2008, -1/+3unless it preforms worse clock for clock compared to i7, just like in the P4 days, except the tables are turned. im just saying it. im eagerly waiting for competition
- silenceissexy, on 11/21/2008, -2/+3Like the E8500's have been doing since they came out?
  - UtopiaInTheSky, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1Intel's 45nm quads do it easily, as long as you have the multiplier for it. Most of their consumer-level chips are too restricted, but the Extreme version is unlimited in that sense. This has nothing to do with the technology of the chips, but rather Intel's choice to purposely limit the multiplier (They want you to buy more expensive chips rather than just OC the cheaper ones).
    
    In short: 4 GHz on air? Old news for both duals and quads.
fuzzynyanko, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Ack. I just bought a Phenom. At the least, I can pop in the Phenom II next year into my motherboard, and that's one of the reasons why I went with AMD this time
TheShom, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1That's stickin it to 'em, AMD.
aserer511, on 11/21/2008, -2/+4Hm. maybe I *will* own another AMD computer. if they can price these things competitively, and I mean, 3/4 the price of a comparable i7, then we'll talk
ckasprzak, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Always been a fan of the green team, keep it coming guys!
TunisEleven, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1I got an AMD 6400+ X2 running at 3.5 on air, and I really do not need any more of an overclock. I am very much looking forward to the Phenom II X4, but I will probably wait a while. Why upgrade now when my SLI GTX 260's destroy Crysis? :)
- gothicform, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1Me too.... 3.5 on air, can ramp it up to about 3.6 but it does occasionally crash then. Sad thing is it's still the fastest AMD option out there, or at least was last month when I checked Tom's Hardware.
Rizmaster, on 11/21/2008, -2/+6Show me it benching faster than a Core i7 and we'll talk.

I'm enthusiastic to see AMD return to greatness, but I've seen too much marketing ***** from them in the last few years as they make ***** processors and get spanked by intel.

When I see it bench faster than a 920, then I'll be ready to switch back.
- UtopiaInTheSky, on 11/21/2008, -1/+2Yeah, I agree with you on this one. I'd be excited, but AMD has had a really bad "trash talking" reputation ever since C2D came out. Right before they released the original Phenoms, they would constantly talk about their native quad cores, and how it would instinctively just "be better" than whatever Intel was producing. We know now they were talking out of their asses. And of course we can't forget the 3870X2 press, and the whole 3800 series was a massive flop as well.
  
  The article is an interesting read, but I chalk it up with the rest of my AMD "In your dreams" material. Perhaps they've hit the sweet spot this time, and they'll make a come-back, but their track record isn't looking too good right now.
Photokon, on 11/21/2008, -10/+1But can it run crysis?
Catch_ME, on 11/21/2008, -7/+1Wait wait wait..
Am I the only person here who thinks that there should never be a consumer CPU over 4 GHz?
- solidus636, on 11/21/2008, -0/+5Yes.
- digitallysick, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Dont worry you can give all of you 4ghz and up processors to me, so you won't have to suffer, ok?
ryanmsean, on 11/21/2008, -7/+1I got a Celeron LGA775 347 at 8 GIGAHURTZ, do I win??
darkmagician777, on 11/21/2008, -3/+1I have had some issues with Dell version AMD system - I went with the Amd driver over the Dell intel version already on the dell xp cd. Im hoping that AMD will be as easy to install as native Intel. I plan on taking out the old dell - turn the AMD E521 to a home server using Linux raid. Simple enough for sure. As much as the Phenom II looks great I really hope AMD can deliver it all at competitive prices. As for Vista - Vista seems to be the rebirth of Windows Millennium. I want to see windows 7 (stable and resolved) with this new Phenom II and DDR3.
- gravesg, on 11/21/2008, -1/+4The problem is your bought a Dell.
V3NOM, on 11/21/2008, -0/+9I hope this generation of processors is something like this generation of graphics cards. The GTX 280 may be the most powerful card out there, but the 4870 isn't all that much worse and is a hell of a lot cheaper.

Even if the Phenom2 X4 doesn't beat the i7 960, hopefully it will be priced more cheaply enough to be more worth the cash.
vanden9, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1So say I have a Hp with a stock AMD Phenom(TM) 9650 quad-core processor (2.3GHz) and I want to upgrade to the Phenom II can I just buy the cpu on newegg and pop it in to my computer... Just like a it was a cus build pc?
- meed, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3That is about how it probably will work out, although you never know if the bios will need to be upgraded or if there will be a bios upgrade for your system to be made compatible.
- tnoy, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2If the BIOS supports it, yes.
lopla, on 11/21/2008, -9/+2can it run crysis?
ElimGarak, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Hard to say whether this means anything - depends on the efficiency and what AMD did with the Phenom 2. Jump from Athlon 64 to Phenom didn't give much of an improvement - unlike Intel procs which have significant perf improvements with every release.

I think unless Pheom 2 to Phenom perf improvement is as good as Athlon 64 to Athlon XP, I don't see anything happening.
- Coercion, on 11/21/2008, -0/+0and if it's not almost a thousand bucks :/
Coercion, on 11/21/2008, -0/+0guess i'll be waiting to update my desktop. meh.
Jeezoflip, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1"We’ve been spending some quality time with the folks at AMD *today* in sunny Austin, TX *today*."
-Nice grammar.
digger28, on 11/21/2008, -0/+5Performance per $$$ is what is is all about, I could care less how has the fastest chip. I don't buy those over priced CPUs anyways.
outlw6669, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1I seem to remember cherry picked B2 Phenoms reaching 3.5Ghz before the initial release of the arch...
I will not be impressed until I see what the average shipped part can do.
culbeda, on 11/21/2008, -1/+1So without having RTFA, let me guess. AM3? AM2++? Perhaps some new, cooler name for yet another freakin' socket?
- cougar618, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1Well, it is using DDR3...
  and also, if I understand it correctly, AM2+ is compatible w/ AM3
orbital318, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1i dunno just because you can nuke a hot dog in 2 seconds doesn't mean it will taste better than the one that takes 4 seconds.

GHz = speed is SOOOOOO passe and over rated.
Gustomucho, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1Now.. where can I find liquid nitrogen?
changturkey, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1Go AMD!
FuckTheNWO311, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1I'm so happy I've stuck with AM2/AM2+ over the last couple of years :D

AMD FOR LIFE!
DotGet, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1Meh. Core i7 ftw. The benchmarks detailing improvements over Core 2 quad (which were over and above AMD's phenom already), are really impressive in both applications and games. Intel was wrong in saying we wouldn't see so big of a jump in performance of games with the new socket. Using the exact same graphics setup, you can see fps doubling with the core i7 upgrade - basically it removes CPU bottlenecking left and right. Very impressive.

Also, the Core i7 920 - the low-end of the series - overclocks to 4GHz on air. The 965 can probably make it up to 5GHz without much trouble.
- alternativesurf, on 11/23/2008, -0/+1Seconded, So what if you can get the AMD proc up to 5Ghz. Doesnt mean its going to operate faster and more efficent than the 920. Example: My 3.2GHZ Pentium D gets raped by a 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo... using AMD's logic, mine should be hella better because I have a faster clock speed. Intel FTW!
Ricochetbiscuit, on 11/21/2008, -0/+1New high res images were added to the article just now. Check it out: http://hothardware.com/News/AMD-Sneak-Peeks-Phenom ...
Zemnexx, on 11/22/2008, -0/+1Austin, TX? I live there! I want to see!
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AMD Sneak Peeks Phenom II, Overclocks To 5+GHz

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