If you plan on upgrading to Intel's Pentium 4, there are a few design issues to take into consideration before taking the plunge. Several aspects of the P4's design make a simple "motherboard swap" impossible, so expect to be buying more than just a board and processor.

The first purchase will be a motherboard based on Intel's new i850 chipset coupled with the ICH2, the same I/O Controller Hub used with the i815E chipset. This combination offers support for the dual-RDRAM channels, ATA-100, and four USB ports with 24Mbps of bandwidth. For the most part, the i850 is very similar to the other chipsets based on Intel's Hub Architecture other than support for the NetBurst architecture.

A second obvious purchase is RDRAM. Since the i850 uses dual channels, RAM has to be installed in pairs; making memory upgrades a very costly endeavor. Intel has given us word that their boxed processors will be bundled with dual 64MB RIMMS, however a quick online search of availability indicates that only some of the Pentium 4 processors will include RDRAM. We suspect that such an incentive will help ease the burden of upgrading, but will certainly not decide whether or not the Pentium 4 receives industry acceptance.

As we explained earlier, the Pentium 4 occupies much more silicon than the Pentium III, and at 1.5GHz, it releases quite a bit of heat. Because of this, Intel uses a 450-gram heatsink with a copper base and aluminum fins for a good balance between quick dissipation and affordability. Unfortunately, the tradeoff is weight and durability. With a 450-gram heatsink resting on the motherboard the PCB undergoes a significant load. To combat this problem, Intel has affixed four screws around the heatsink to attach it directly to the chassis. The result of this modification is the need for a new chassis, designed for a P4 motherboard.

Along the same lines, the ATX specification has been modified to accommodate the Pentium 4 and named 2.03. The purpose of the revision was to add a 12V connector to the power supply capable of delivering a dedicated power output for the processor so motherboard manufacturers will not have to route power across the board to deliver the ~52W required by the Pentium 4. Cases without this power connector will not be compatible with the Pentium 4; so if you are in the market for a case, make sure it is outfitted with an ATX12V connector.

Undoubtedly, the computer enthusiast who upgrades every year or two will be turned off by the requirements of the Pentium 4, and quite simply, we sympathize. Intel has deadened the blow by bundling the still-pricey RDRAM with the Pentium 4, but a motherboard, CPU, and case will still be at least a thousand dollars US.

Now on to the benchmarks…