AMD Computer Processors CPUs

AMD Computer Processors

AMD chipsets are engineered to act as advanced computing chips. Utilizing proprietary AMD technology, these processors are designed for high calculation speeds and efficiency. Fitting into a range of motherboard configurations in both laptop and desktop computers, AMD processors can increase your rig's computing power.

There are a number of questions buyers should ask themselves before picking a CPU.

• Power: Evaluate how much computing power will work for your needs. Will this be a computer for recreational use, work, or a bit of both? If you do a lot of calculation-intensive activities, such as video editing, image editing, 3D rendering, or design work, you will want to consider a faster processor. If your daily computer use is limited to browsing the web, editing documents and spreadsheets, or watching movies, performance concerns can be kept to a minimum. Also, consider how much multitasking you'll be doing. Users who consistently work on more than one thing at a time, have lots of browser tabs open, or run multiple instances of the same program will want to consider a faster unit.
• Gaming needs: Gamers will want to take the selection of their chipset carefully. Do you plan on purchasing a separate GPU for your machine? What games do you plan on playing? Will the computer be used for any other tasks? Generally speaking, gaming is usually very processor-intensive and it benefits from high-end chips.
• Compatability: One last consideration is future-proofing. When purchasing a chip, be sure it will be compatible with any future upgrade plans you may have. Computer hardware, and in particular CPUs, can sometimes have strict compatibility guidelines that should be researched before a selection is made.
• Socket type: Be sure to verify the socket type used on your current motherboard matches the CPU you're considering for purchase. Documentation for the CPU will specify which socket types the CPU is compatible with.

APU stands for accelerated processing unit. AMD APUs combine both graphics and computational processors in the same chip. Thanks to the acquisition of graphics card giant ATI, AMD was able to combine powerful graphics processing and multi-core processors. Low-power variants of AMD APUs can be found in some video-game consoles.

Sometimes, AMD APUs will be listed as CPUs. Pay close attention to the chip's model prefix to ascertain whether the chip includes onboard graphics. Models that begin with the A4, A6, A8, A10, or A12 prefix are APUs and will have an integrated graphics processor onboard. In addition to those listed here, there are a handful of other brand prefixes that tell you the chip is an APU type.