While the allure of a polished, sleek one-gigahertz system can persuade the power hungry to part with hard earned currency - and lots of it - it is well worth noting that the overall pace of a PC comes down to a lot more than pure processor speed. So says Jason McMillan, product manager for Tarsus PC at Tarsus Technologies.
"While a gigahertz processor is the new, fast thing these days, one fact is clear: a racy CPU doesn`t guarantee optimal performance," notes McMillan. He says a supercharged processor is only one of several components that determine a PC`s all-around agility.
"If you are prepared to lay out the kind of cash required for a 1 GHz system, don`t skimp on the hard drive, the motherboard, the memory and vitally important, the graphics card," declares McMillan.
Build quality and thoughtful integration of these key components can result in an 800MHz machine outperforming a 1-GHz machine that has been cobbled together with obsolete components, he adds. "Don`t be fooled by brute cycles and impressive processors - when spending on a top notch system, make sure the machine is built from top notch components," he says.
McMillan says the parts of choice should include an Ultra ATA-66 compliant hard drive running at at least 7200RPM, which will give the fastest seek times, a motherboard that supports a 133Mhz bus and memory modules running at 133Mhz.
"The motherboard should also have support for the ATA-100 standard," continues McMillan. He says the new A-Open AX3, built around the Intel 815e chipset and used in the construction of the Tarsus PC, supports this emerging standard. "At present IBM is the only drive supplier with ATA-100 ready drives - Seagate is expected to deliver these shortly. The rotational speed is another issue; IDE drives run at a maximum of 7200RPM at present, but 10 000 and 15 000RPM drives are imminent," he says.
"Your average business users might not notice any real-world performance gains from such a fast PC; but content creators working in high-end apps - and games enthusiasts - will find plenty to praise," he concludes.
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