Availability: starting February 14th (happy Valentine's Day!)

Web Site: www.amd.com

No, it isn't a complex physics equation or the legend for your online taxes; rather, it's AMD's formula for success in the year 2000. Debuting at 850MHz, AMD is making their move to the inside lane, hoping to put a pass on Intel that will establish them as the definitive leader. With Intel struggling to get their 800MHz processors to the retail market, AMD's latest release is shooting to seize the pole position in the savage CPU race.

1999 was a tumultuous year, ushering in over twenty processor launches as AMD and Intel jockeyed for position. Both manufacturers successfully made the move to a .18-micron process, further fueling the frustrating MHz war that has overwhelmed the CPU industry.

Unlike AMD, Intel has already transitioned to a 256KB on-die L2 cache, giving their Coppermine a bit of a performance edge. On the other hand, with AMD delivering the raw speed, it will only be a matter of time before Intel has to play catch-up.

With the top-of-the-line processor changing almost every month, it becomes increasingly difficult to decide when to buy and which processor will deliver the most potency for your dollar. Make no mistake about it, the "latest and greatest" won't be your most economical choice, but alas, this is the price we pay for speed.

However, if speed is what you desire, there is no need to dwell on the pessimistic matter of price. It seems every time we upgrade, our costly pride and joy becomes yesterday's news before even making it home from the local computer store. So instead let us focus on performance and how AMD's latest offering will affect the time you spend at your computer desk.