AMDs 2.9GHz quad-core Athlon II X4 635
processor is built for those looking for good multi-threaded performance on
a very tight budget. At just $120USD it's one of the most affordable quad-core
processors available today.
The Athlon II X4 does involve a bit of compromise, and
that`s because it sacrifices its L3 cache.
And while this socket AM3 processor model has
been blessed with a 100MHz boost over its nearest predecessor, the Athlon
II 630, it's still not fast enough to compete with AMD's own dual-core
processors, let alone Intel's Core 2 Duo series in single threaded
applications.
Fortunately the Athlon II X4 635 CPU
does shine once multiple processes and threads start taking advantage of
the four cores. In multi-threaded benchmarks like POV-RAY and Cinebench,
AMDs Athlon II X4 635 stays competitive with the likes of Phenom IIs and at
times Intel's more expensive Core i5 processor. In terms of
price-to-multithreaded-performance, the Athlon II X4 635 offers a compelling
option for mainstream PC builders.
The socket AM3 Athlon II X4 635 processor is
natively compatible with both socket AM2+ (DDR2) and AM3
(DDR3) motherboards. This means that upgrading to a quad-core processor can
literally just be a matter of picking up the Athlon II X4 635 from your local
computer shop and dropping it into an existing AMD system. The Athlon II X4 635
will also be forward compatible with AMD's upcoming 880G and 890G chipset
platform, which will be appearing in the first quarter of 2010 with SATA6 and
USB3.0.
The reality for today is that AMDs Athlon II X4 635
is a great value CPU at $125 CDN ($119 USD, £60 GBP), especially
for those looking at heavily multi-threaded workloads on a budget. Is is by no
means the fastest chip, and the lack of L3 cache does put it at a
continuous disadvantage in several benchmarks as you witnessed. Considering all
that, for those on a budget with modest computing requirements the AMD Athlon II
X4 635 processor offers a good balance between overall system performance
and value. In other words, if you`re assembling a mainstream PC for light home
use and trying to keep costs down, you should consider this quad-core
chip over Phenom II X2 dual core solutions.
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