Desktops Buying Guide

Don't be mystified by jargon or fooled by hype. Our comprehensive Buying Guides help you choose the right products.

What you need to know, from the kind of user you are to current technologies:

SELECT THE PROCESSOR AND MEMORY

Desktop PC specs (and prices) vary widely, from budget boxes for basic tasks such as word processing and emailing to performance PCs for playing the latest 3D games or editing digital video. The speed and type of processor and memory you choose will play a large role in determining overall system performance. Here, we'll help you navigate the many choices you face in this area.

Processor | Memory

Processor

The brains of any PC is the CPU, or central processing unit. It's the single most important component, but that doesn't mean you need to rush out and splurge on the processor with the fastest clock speed. Both Intel and AMD charge a premium for their top-of-the-line CPUs. For most users, we recommend scaling back a notch or two. You'll save a lot of money and, generally speaking, you get more bang for the buck by upgrading memory.

PROCESSOR

DESKTOP TYPE

PROS AND CONS

AMD Athlon 64

Mainstream or performance

The first 64-bit CPU for Windows desktops, the Athlon 64 has native support for today's 32-bit applications and operating systems, and it delivers blistering performance that will only improve when Microsoft releases a 64-bit version of Windows and software developers begin to roll out 64-bit apps.

AMD Athlon 64 FX

Performance

The higher-end version of the Athlon 64. Currently the fastest consumer-level single-core CPU on the market.

AMD Athlon XP

Budget

Cheaper at every level than their P4 counterparts, Athlon XP processors don't quite live up to their performance rating in the model numbers (the 2800+, for example, is more on a par with a 2.6GHz P4).

AMD Sempron

Budget

A solid option for when you want to keep the price down, but not as speedy as the Athlon XP. Comparable to Intel's Celeron D chips.

Apple PowerPC G4

Mac Mini and eMac

Apple's old performance chip, jointly developed by Motorola, can now be found on the mainstream Mac Mini and the budget eMac. Its clock speed tops out at only 1.42GHz and, like all products from Apple, it's not cheap.

Apple PowerPC G5

iMac and Power Mac

The first 64-bit processor for a desktop of any kind is a huge leap for Apple. Co-developed with IBM, the G5 was an impressive performer in our tests, and it boasts a clock speed of 1.8Gz to 2.5GHz. It'll cost you, though.

Intel Celeron D

Budget

Inexpensive, but slower than Intel Pentium chips. Comparable to AMD's Sempron CPUs.

Intel Pentium 4

Mainstream

The majority of today's PCs use a Pentium 4. The older 500 series is 32-bit, while the newer 600 series offers 64-bit support.

Intel Pentium 4 Extreme Edition

Performance

Stealing a page from its Xeon processor, the P4EE increases performance, not by cranking up the clock speed, but by adding a third layer of cache. It's incredibly expensive.

Intel Pentium Processor Extreme Edition

Performance

Intel's dual-core CPU will benefit design pros and multitaskers now, but it should have a bigger impact when more applications come out that are specifically written to take advantage of the chip's multiple processing paths. It also provides 64-bit support.

Intel Pentium M

Budget or mainstream

A notebook CPU that pops up in certain small desktops. Slower clock speed, but a better-than-expected performer, thanks to its large cache. Runs cool and quiet.

Memory

The amount and type of memory you choose go a long way towards dictating your system's overall level of performance. For a machine running Windows XP, we highly recommend you start with 512MB. You'll see much better performance than with the bare-minimum 256MB, especially when running multiple apps concurrently or using intensive image- or video-editing applications. Written in one of two ways, memory speed is referred to by the speed in which it communicates with the CPU (400MHz, for example) or by its data bandwidth (3.2GB per second or PC3200).

For the most part, you'll find two different types of memory in new systems: DDR SDRAM and DDR2 SDRAM. AMD Athlon-based systems currently support only DDR (without tweaking), generally running 400MHz. You might see some configurations with 333MHz memory, but they're probably bottom-of-the-barrel systems. Newer Intel-based systems that use the 915, 925 or 955 chipsets support supposedly more advanced DDR2 memory, which can run at either 533MHz or 667MHz. DDR2 is currently still working through some performance kinks to do with how fast it moves data. As the tech matures, we'll probably see it live up to its potential, but for now, it offers no appreciable benefit over older DDR memory.