AMD Phenom X3 processors fall below $125

By: Rob Adams
Staff Writer
Published: Jul 21, 2008

Three AMD Phenom X3 processors with clock speeds ranging from 2.1 Ghz to 2.4 have dropped below the $125 price range.

Combined with the AMD 780 series chipsets, the new chips are aimed at high-end PCs for entertainment and games. For additional power, an ATI Radeon graphics process from AMD could be added. The card's "hybrid graphics technology" makes it possible to run the graphics processor in conjunction with processor on the chipset to give PC performance an added jolt, AMD said.

In addition, the platform supports DirectX 10, the latest 3-D graphics technology from Microsoft. DirectX 10 is exclusive to Windows Vista.

The three Phenom X3 models are 8750, 8650 and 8450, which have clock speeds of 2.4 GHz, 2.3 GHz and 2.1 GHz, respectively, per core. Pricing is $175 for the 8750, $145 for the 8650 and $125 for the 8450.

AMD's strategy behind its triple-core product line is to offer a processor that's faster than dual-core products, while less expensive than the quad-core processors offered by rival Intel. While triple-core chips are not as powerful as quad-core processors, the former deliver the power needed for mainstream entertainment and gaming PCs at a lower price.

AMD introduced the Phenom X3 8000 series earlier this year with the 8600 and 8400 models.

In pairing the 8000 series with its 780 chipsets, AMD is offering a platform that it claims provides smooth HD viewing of movies in Blu-ray format. Supported video-related standards include H.264 for video compression, MPEG-2 for the generic coding of moving pictures and associated audio information, and VC-1, a video codec standard initially developed by Microsoft.