I'm confused.:confused: it used to be that ghz was the benchmark to decide speed and power of processors, but no I'm not sure anymore. I currently have a 32bit Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 2.80GHz processor and 2GB RAM. (from 2006)

I'm looking to upgrade. Maybe an Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-920 processor (2.66GHz, 1MB L2 + 8MB shared L3 cache with QPI Technology). But since this one is only 2.66GHz, it would seem to be slower. But that can't possibly be the case. How can you compare processors today? What is the key spec to look at? Is the i7 processor quad core or something? I don't know how to determine if I am gaining a faster PC here.

Thanks for any help.

The i7 is a QUAD core processor, so FOUR CPU's on one chip.
The P4 on the other hand only has ONE core.

It's still a case of looking at raw Ghz, but then AMD comes along and messes everything up..

That's a different story entirely..

So are you saying that the i7 at 2.66GHZ I am looking at is actually SLOWER than my current 2.8GHz?

Errr, read what I posted again.

You told me to look at the raw GHZ. So, if I do that, and my PC is 2.8GHZ and this new i7 is 2.6GHZ, then mine is faster. I guess I'm still missing something. Sorry.

FOUR processors ;)

OK, I think I get it (2.66GHZ x 4). But doesn't mine (32bit Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 2.80GHz processor) have 4 processors too?

Nope.
P4's are SINGLE core..

OK, so at the end of the day (apples to apples), I currently have a TOTAL of 2.8GHZ of speed, and if I buy this i7, then I would have a TOTAL of 10.64GHz (2.66 x 4) of speed.

that's more or less the case, right?

Close enough for a quick comparison.

You know, you're not a bastard at all... I don't care what ANYONE says!! :D Thanks for the help Ben. I really appreciate it!

Hi,
Just to interject; a useful place to look also is at the caches. L1 is pretty much fixed and split in half for data and instructions. L2 varies and a large L3 will make a huge difference with some software. Useful may be:
ARK | Your source for information on Intel products
And do not forget there are a bunch of sockets that the CPU plugs into.
Peace,
Clarke

In recent years, processor vendors have purposely obfuscated the technical prowess of their processors with a dizzying array of marketing names to avoid direct competitor comparison. I've found PassMark Software - CPU Benchmark Charts to be handy for determining relative worth of different processors.

Thank you