Pinning Down The Processor

Hands down, the processor has experienced the biggest advancements in computing, and wrapping your head around this central component will help you choose the best PC for your needs. But to determine which of Intel’s new 2010 Core Processors best suit your lifestyle, you need to understand what exactly these processors can do and how they’re smarter than ever before.

You already know that the processor is important and no computer can run without one. In fact, the processor is so important that it’s often referred to as “the brain” of the PC, and similar to a brain, it processes nearly everything that occurs on your PC, from aspects of software and Web video playback to lending a helping hand when converting media files and rendering visual effects on your photos. The processor is even responsible for the performance of a video game. It handles the most complex processes involved in games, such as artificial intelligence and physics, allowing the graphics adapter more bandwidth to enhance the images. Processors can also handle the complex instructions required to play high-definition video and Blu-ray Discs. Multitasking is another area in which the processor feels right at home; it lets your system perform multiple actions at the same time without slowing to a crawl or grinding to a halt.

Intel’s Pentium processors are still around, and they offer classic and reliable performance for standard apps. But Intel’s new 2010 Core Processors aren’t your father’s processor; they’re built smarter to enhance your computing experience with today’s and tomorrow’s apps and HD computing.

Intel’s Secret Sauce

The processor is as close to a universal tool as a computer has in its toolbox. And never has that been truer than it is with the new Intel Core Processor family. For example, these processors are flexible enough to handle modern social networking sites, but smart enough to be able to adapt to a rapidly evolving Web that blurs the line between the online Web and your offline Desktop. Imagine the rich interactive Internet of tomorrow, where you can drag and drop to download and upload files at will. The technology in Intel’s new 2010 Core Processors ensures that they will perform current tasks, and those that are right around the corner, with speed and efficiency.

Multiway processing. Intel’s new 2010 Core Processors all feature a technology called Hyper-Threading, which effectively doubles the number of processes a core can run. The Intel Core i3 and Core i5 processors both feature Hyper-Threading, which lets them process up to four software threads simultaneously. The top-shelf Intel Core i7, on the other hand, is capable of 8-way processing for unparalleled computing performance, regardless of the application(s) you run. As you’d expect, Hyper-Threading is one of the smart features you’ll find on Intel’s new 2010 Core Processors, but that’s not the whole story.

Turbo Boost. All software generally falls into one of two categories: single-threaded and multithreaded. As we’ve already mentioned, Intel created its Hyper-Threading technology to address the specific demands of multithreaded applications. Single-threaded applications, however, such as Apple’s iTunes, rely on a single thread to get the job done, and as a result, there’s little performance difference between a processor with or without Hyper-Threading. That’s where Intel’s Turbo Boost Technology comes in. Turbo Boost can detect single-threaded applications and automatically increase the gigahertz of the processor to give those applications a significant burst of speed. Now that’s smart.

The New 2010 Intel Core Processor Family For the latest batch of processors, Intel’s engineers made it their objective to design chips that are not only good at running a wide variety of processes, but also good at running them efficiently and concurrently, regardless of the shape and form of the code used to create a particular application. Read on to determine which of Intel’s latest processors best meets your computing needs. Good. Smart computing starts with Intel's Core i3 processor, which is designed to handle the modern demands of an increasingly high-definition world. All Intel Core i3 processors feature Hyper-Threading for 4-way processing, making it an excellent processor for multitasking and the computing demands of today and tomorrow. It’s also the most affordable way to boost the brain power of your PC. Better. A step up in performance and features brings you face-to-face with the Intel Core i5 processor, which features the same HD computing and 4-way processing capabilities as the Core i3, but with the addition of Intel’s Turbo Boost Technology, which makes the Core i5 a powerful component for software of all shapes and sizes. Best. The Intel Core i7 processor features the same HD computing and Turbo Boost capabilities of the Core i3 and Core i5 processors but multiplies the Hyper-Threading for unparalleled 8-way processing. This effectively doubles the number of software threads the Core i7 can handle compared to the Core i3 or Core i5. It’s the ultimate in performance for the computer user looking for unbeatable performance.