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Sharky Extreme : Monthly Value Gaming System Buyer's Guide |
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Monthly Value Gaming System Buyer's Guide |
September Value Gaming PC Buyer's Guide - Page 8By Vince Freeman September 19, 2006AMD Athlon 64 X2 System
Case: Antec Sonata II (with 450W PSU) - $89 Total: $1,001
Case: Antec Sonata II (with 450W PSU) - $89 Total: $1,001 This latest Value Gaming PC Buyer's Guide is not a total system overhaul, but instead targets specific areas, and makes the changes necessary to achieve the top price-performance rating. This month, it was processors that caught our eye. This was due to the introduction of the Core 2 line of processors, and the subsequent AMD price drops, both of which made the CPU market a bargain hunter's dream. We certainly moved up the performance scale with the Core 2 Duo E6300 and Athlon 64 X2 4200+ upgrades, which in turn required new motherboards, and potentially a change to DDR2 memory as well. We also added a 16X DVD writer to the system mix, while maintaining the status quo on the remainder of the component list. Both the AMD and Intel systems are very similar in terms of overall performance, a statement that has not been made in some time. These two system configurations are so closely matched that even the retail prices are exactly the same. Intel benefits from the Core 2 Duo, while AMD's recent price drops allow us to buy higher than we have a right to, thus equalizing performance for the most part, while adding new platform features to our systems. The LG DVD Writer is a welcome upgrade, as adding DL DVD writing capabilities gives our value systems another nice boost. Our AMD and Intel value configurations are looking great for Fall 2006, and these two systems continue to offer mainstream or higher performance, but at a budget price. As we like to say each month, it is surprising what kind of PC you can put together for a cool $1K. At the end of the day, these are two very well-equipped PCs. Our value gaming systems come complete with impressive Core 2 Duo and Athlon 64 X2 processors, new PCI Express motherboards, 7200 RPM SATA 3.0 Gb/s hard drives, CD and DVD writing capabilities, and a very nice GeForce 7600 GT 256MB PCIe video card. If overall value is your main goal, these AMD and Intel gaming PCs certainly deliver, and both offer a noticeable price-performance advantage over our higher-end buyer's guide configurations. * Please note that the prices in our guide do not include shipping costs or taxes. The final system price also reflects a "best case" scenario of finding an online vendor that stocks the majority of internal components, or having access to a number of local computer retailers for system quotes and comparison shopping.
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