StarTech.com Universal AMD 64-bit CPU Heatsink with fan

Advantages: Best Bang for Buck
Disadvantages: Little 64-bit Software Support

...AMD have really got the right mix of ideas in this CPU, not only was it one of the first 64-bit CPUs on the market (a long time before Intel had a 64-bit CPU) it is also a major leap from the old SocketA CPUs. Well whats changed? The CPU is now hidden under a heatspreader, much like the Pentium4. This gives added protection when installing the CPU into the socket and makes applying the thermal interface material (TIM) a lot easier. The socket arrangement is now alot better then old Socket A. Sockets 754, 939 and 940 all are the same size and have the same retention bracket making the Heatsink Fan (HSF) universal for the whole AMD range now. However its what is going on inside the CPU is what has made it such a ground breaking model. 64-bit is the next step now for the computer market giving access to larger amounts of RAM and Storage... Read review

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Advantages: 64-bit future proofed, speedy, excellent value for money
Disadvantages: Dual core AMD 64 CPUS are faster... but hey it would make this CPU cheaper so it's not all bad!

...speed frequencies i.e. 2.2GHz. This enabled it to run a lot cooler (around 45 degrees Celsius at full load), use a lot less power, and enabled feasible overclocking (that is running a CPU faster than it is intended to be run at) even with the provided heatsink and fan in the retail box. They labelled their CPUs as 3000+ even if it was a 2.2GHz processor to show that it ran at the equivalent speed of Intel's 3GHz CPU. So how does AMD manage to have their CPU's run more efficiently than Intel's even with lower clock speeds? Although a lot of things contribute to it such as cache memory, front side bus and the like, the main thing to effect it is due to the length of the CPU's pipeline. A pipeline is set in stages, and the more stages it has the longer the pipeline is. AMD's Athlon 64 CPU pipeline length is between 12 - 17, whilst Intel... Read review

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Advantages: Amazingly fast
Disadvantages: Gets hot quite fast

...Intel processor. You should not let this put you of as AMD like to name their processors with the equivalent Intel clock speed. For example, the AMD Athlon 64 3000+ is supposed to be as fast as the Intel Pentium 3.0 GHz equivalent. Whilst on the subject of AMD vs. Intel, Intel processors tend to run a lot hotter than their AMD counterpart meaning that you may need to reconsider your cooling system if upgrading from an AMD processor. The bundled CPU fan and heatsink is more than suitable for the processor, so you should not need to go out of the way with purchasing a new CPU heatsink and fan. Installing the CPU is very important as such as a delicate piece of hardware can very easily be damaged. Particularly with the Pentium D processors, total care needs to be given to the pin arrangement not only on the processor itself but also... Read review

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