ABT Builder’s Guide: September-October 2008

CPUs / PROCESSORS

Based on the prices of the current processor line-ups, it is difficult to see why anyone would recommend a single core processor, and as such, the only recommendations that I make are for dual and quad core.

Dual vs Quad Debate

This is a debate that has been ongoing for the last two years or so, but it is only recently that we in the tech community have somewhat come to a consensus.  It has been proven that, whether you overclock or not, faster dual cores will outperform slower quads in applications (including games) that only make use of two cores. Quad cores start to pull ahead with the power hungry applications that make use of more than two cores.

The other concept behind this debate has been “future-proofing”.  Some argue that this is a silly premise to base a purchase on, given that there is always something better just around the corner and with that comes further price reduction of current hardware. Those that agree with this line of argument are usually people with more frequent upgrade cycles. Those that do not upgrade often, tend to defend the concept of “future-proofing” their machines.

My recommendation is, if you don’t plan to upgrade within the next two years, you will be better off buying a quad core processor now. For the frequent upgrader, grabbing a fast dual-core now will be a strong choice. The other option is, however, to wait for Intel’s new line of processors, Core i7 (more commonly known as Nehalem), but that is a whole different story.  This guide is for what to buy in September 2008.

As always, all purchases are defined by what matters most, your budget.  So here we go, the following are my recommendations.

Honourable Mentions:
Price – Celeron E1200
Performance – Core 2 Quad 9650