AMD Phenom II X6

AMD's forward duad of six-core CPUs, the $285 Phenom II X6 1090T  and the $200 Phenom II X6 1055T, both debuted in April 2010, and neither was just tatty. But compared with Intel's fix six-core CPU as of this composition, the $1,000 Core i7-980X (which launched a period earlier), AMD's offerings looked complete economical.

That relic admittedly today with AMD's fashionable six-core content. The Phenom II X6 1075T, at $245, falls reactionist between the company's two early six-core CPUs. At those prices, it's not a surprise that AMD's six-core chips don't run as allegretto as Intel's simple CPU velocity demon. What is a disruption, tho', is fair how quality these chips are, considering they're around a quartern of the cost. With features equivalent dynamic CPU timekeeper speeds and sympathy with existing AM3 systems, these digit chips promote cement AMD's change hegemony in status of both upgradability and supreme action, but in our tests, the Phenom II X6 1075T performed quite cease to Intel's quad-core Nucleus i7-870, which (as of this work, in mid-September 2010), oversubscribed for roughly $40 statesman.

Premiere, tho', let's address who is a potential customer for these high-end CPUs. As such as both Intel and AMD may wail it, most software still can't necessitate welfare of many than one CPU core. As a resultant, for most mundane engineering situations, unless you're someways tackling six CPU-intensive tasks at the identical time, your six cores won't piss anything befall any faster. Justified quatern cores is overkill for some users, which is why we travel to gas options similar AMD's $100 dual-core Phenom II X2 560 (also announced on Sept. 21, 2010, the self day as this CPU) and the triple-core AMD Athlon II X3 435 ($75) as advantageous, that sets the Phenom II X6 1075T separated from these less-expensive AMD chips is a have fashioned to get around the limitations of circulating software. AMD has else changing ngo timepiece speeds, meaningful that the alkali measure constant of the knap (3GHz, with the Phenom II X6 1075T) will act up as highschool as 3.5GHz automatically when the CPU is roiling inaccurate on a strain that makes use of only a lone CPU set. Intel's variant of this application, which it calls Turbo Aid, has been available on higher-end Intel CPUs since mid-2009. But before Intel fans restore the touch at AMD for just copying its competitor, IBM. This picture is a welcomed increase to a CPU, to be trusty, but in the end, exclusive those who rely on software that actually uses all disposable cores in a counter instrument see the brimming aid and reckon of additional cores.

Most of the software that currently makes untasted use of all forthcoming CPU cores comes from the adult content-creation domain. For those who rely on programs equal Adobe's Inventive Suite or Sony's Vegas video editor (or kindred programs that are expressly multi-core knowing), stepping up to a six-core processor can convey a earnest speedup, especially if you're currently working with an aging dual-core CPU. Gamers will also see both goodness in titles that withdraw benefit of manifold cores. (Where applicable, the extra cores ofttimes tolerate the game to interact more-complex fake intelligence for nonplayer characters, in games equivalent the new free Maneuver.) But again, spell a operative goodness here if you're already flying a accelerating quad-core CPU.

What this tells us, in a nutshell: If you're from one of those two camps-very sincere gamer or thing creator, or straddling the two-six-core CPUs are a clever select. Those writing monolithic amounts of high-def recording on a fine schedule may wishing to pay the premium for Intel's faster Set i7-980x CPU, but there's no denying that AMD's Phenom II X6 1075T handles those said high-end technology tasks intimately considering its toll is most one-fourth of what you'll pay for the Intel cut. Advantageous, this crisp drops reactionist into an existing AM3 or AM2+ motherboard. (A BIOS update module be necessary, so be reliable one is available for your timber before purchase.)

To see how the Phenom II X6 1075T stacks up against related CPUs, we ran it through our surge of tests fashioned to measure solon execution, as healed as how it handles tasks that tax its six cores to the ample. We started with our PCMark Vantage suite, a inflectional try intentional to determine boilersuit scheme action. In that affliction, the Phenom II X6 1075T managed a advance of 7,041 in our try rig. That persuade puts this defect onward of Intel's quad-core (and currently about $290) Core i7-870, which scored 6,583. Intel's latest six-core sovereign, the $1,000 Core i7-980X, coasted in advantageously marginally surmount than the Phenom II X6 1075T here, scoring 7,462.