AMD Sempron CPU's

[ceh4702]

The website

http://www.anandtech.com

did a review of the new AMD Sempron processors. They are going to sell them with the old socket A like the Athlon XP, and some have the newer Athlon 64 core and the 754 socket.

This might be nice if you want the newer Socket 754 motherboard but can afford an Athlon 64 yet. The Sempron 3100 was running games at the XP2800 speeds so it would be better than a XP2500. Of course there were some processors for $39.00 as well to replace the old Durons that will run on a standard Nforce2 chipset motherboard.

If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.

 

[DragonQ0105]

754 Sockets are obsolete already. If you are going to buy an Athlon64, then get the latest 939-Socket Version. 754-Socket CPUs will phase out in a few months, making way for the newer 939-Pin CPUs.


Those of you who are wondering why Desktop CPUs are 939-Pin and Multi-Processor CPUs are 940-Pin here's why:

When the Athlon XP and MP came out (MP = Multi-Processor Version), people realised that they were exactly the same, but the MPs were more expensive...so people with Dual-processor AMD Motherboards bought 2 cheaper Athlon XPs with the same performance. Now, with Athlon 64s, it is impossible to install Single-processor chips in Multi-Processor boards, because they have one less pin.

 

[ceh4702]

If you want to buy the more expensive Athlon FX53 Processor feel free to get the newer chipset. If money is no option and you want to have the fastest possible computer go ahead and buy what makes you happy. I would not want to hold anyone back from what satisfies them.

The Athlon 64 and the 754 socket is far from obsolete.

One main point I would like to stress is that the Sempron is competing with the Intel Celeron Processors. The Sempron will be replacing the Athlon XP processors soon. AMD will fase out the older XP processors as soon as the Semprons start hitting the market.

If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.

 

[DragonQ0105]

OK, Maybe obsolete was the wrong word, but they are not going to be used for much longer because of the newer, better 939-Socket CPUs they are producing.

 

[Krosus]

Uh, 754's arent obsolete infact amd are supporting then till mid 2005, and atm and for foreeable future are better value for money that the 939's with little performance loss.
they just released the athlon64 3700+ on 754 along with the 939 3500+ and 3800+ a month back.

 

[ceh4702]

When a motherboard is obsolete or when a processor is obsolete is an interesting subject. I have a specific take on this. When it comes to the AMD platform there are two types of customers. One customer buys a motherboard and then a CPU and builds a computer and uses it as is for 2-3 years. The other type of customer may upgrade the processor as often as every 3-6 months over the next 2 years. Lets call the second customer the upgrader. If you like to do lots of upgrades it may be hard to pick an AMD Processor and processor combo for the 64 bit computing platform. It is hard to say just how long a chipset will be around. First we had Opterons, then we had Athlon64, then we had the FX53. All three have a different chipset; so what should you think?

I have a mindset that if you keep the same processor and motherboard it might last 2-3 years. If this is you then any leading technology is fine and I suggest you buy the most powerful processor and motherboard you can afford becuase technology changes fast.

If you are a Gamer and do an upgrade or a completely new purchase every 12 months so you can play the latest games You may want a motherboard wich is more upgradability. This is always a tough decision. How do you guage how long a chipset will last. If you look at the Nforce2 chipset then it might last 2 years or even 3 years. People are still buying the Athlon XP 2500 processor. When coupled with a good video card a mediochre processor is just fine.

It is tough to say what the real roadmap of a processor or a chipset will be. The newer chipset may not last any longer than the socket 754, or the Opteron, or AMD may just change their mind. For instance a new chipset with PCI Express and no IDE ports may make the newest chipset obsolete completely. SATA drives have been around for about 12 months but IDE drives seem to be hanging in there and may not completely disappear for a few years. So it is hard to say how long the AGP video cards will still be available.

It is possible that the Socket 754 motherboards will disappear in 6 months. That is often the case with motherboard models. However, they may be a good buy now and give you enjoyment for the next 2 years. I still have a 1.2gig Tulatin Core PIII running at home and it runs pretty good. The motherboard I use now is an Asus A7N8X Nforce2 Chipset motherboard. It is still a viable motherboard and would make a good purchase if you put a 400Mhz FSB Processor on it it will run great. It runs fine with the XP2800+ processor I have on it. If you are a Gamer the Asus A7N8X motherboard may be a good buy with a nice video card on it. So who knows for sure how long the Socket 754 motherboards will be viable.

With all purchases of computers you are buying hardware that will be out of date and possibly in 6 months. Then every once in a while we get a post from someone that is still using a 486 or a P133.

If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.