AMD has just released five new processors along their Phenom II and Athlon II lines, with a (pleasant) focus on more budget-friendly chips, highlighted by the Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition, touted as the fastest (or at least AMD’s fastest) dual-core processor with a 3.2GHz core frequency and a TDP (thermal design power) of only 80W—awesome on its own right, but the best part is it’s price: it’s listed to sell for only $99.
At $99, the 3.2GHz Athlon X2 555 BE is listed as AMD's fastest dual core processor
Since the Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition bears the “Black Edition” label, this also means that the processor’s CPU multiplier is unlocked, giving you more flexibility to overclock it for even faster performance. (Just make sure you know what you’re doing. It’s certainly relatively affordable at $99, but this is still something you;d hate to fry.)
The rest of the range includes the top-end Phenom II X4 910e, a quad core processor that packs a 2.6GHz core and a 65W TDP, and three new Athlon II chips that give buyers a nice balance between price and performance: the quad-core Athlon X4 635 sells for $119 and comes with a 2.9GHz core and a 95W TDP, the $84 X3 440 comes with three cores at 3.0GHz and a 95W TDP, and the X2 255, a 3.1GHz dual core with an efficient 65W TDP for $74.
All five chips will be made available on retail PC systems as well as stand-alone upgrades if you’re already running a system/motherboard with an AM2 or AM3 socket.
Tags: AMD, Athlon II, Desktops, Phenom II, Processors
