An Analysis of the AMD Athlon 64 Processor: Release Information and Benchmark Scores.
Introduction
In 2003, AMD released the Athlon 64 processor, which marked a significant milestone in the company’s history. This processor was the first to use the x86-64 architecture, which allowed for a larger memory address space and support for 64-bit operating systems. In this article, we will take a closer look at the Athlon 64 processor, including its release information and benchmark scores.
Release Information
The AMD Athlon 64 processor was released on September 23, 2003. The processor was available in both socket 754 and socket 939 configurations. The socket 754 version was designed for use in budget systems, while the socket 939 version was intended for high-end systems. The Athlon 64 processor had a clock speed of 2.0 GHz, 512 KB of L2 cache, and support for dual-channel DDR memory.
At the time of its release, the Athlon 64 processor faced stiff competition from Intel’s Pentium 4 processor. However, the Athlon 64’s 64-bit capabilities and superior performance in 32-bit applications made it a popular choice among enthusiasts and gamers.
Benchmark Scores
To evaluate the performance of the Athlon 64 processor, we will look at benchmark scores from popular software at the time of its release.
- SiSoft Sandra 2004 SiSoft Sandra is a system information and benchmarking tool that provides detailed information about hardware and software components. In the CPU Arithmetic benchmark, the Athlon 64 processor scored 7015 MIPS (million instructions per second) and 2741 MFLOPS (millions of floating-point operations per second). In the CPU Multimedia benchmark, the Athlon 64 processor scored 11767 it/s (integer operations per second) and 3172 MFLOPS.
- 3DMark03 3DMark03 is a benchmarking tool that evaluates the performance of a system’s graphics card and CPU in 3D applications. In the CPU test, the Athlon 64 processor scored 1333 3DMarks.
- PCMark04 PCMark04 is a benchmarking tool that evaluates the overall performance of a system. In the CPU test, the Athlon 64 processor scored 3969 PCMarks.
Conclusion
The AMD Athlon 64 processor was a significant release for AMD, as it marked the company’s entry into the 64-bit computing market. At the time of its release, the Athlon 64 processor faced stiff competition from Intel’s Pentium 4 processor. However, the Athlon 64’s 64-bit capabilities and superior performance in 32-bit applications made it a popular choice among enthusiasts and gamers. The benchmark scores from SiSoft Sandra 2004, 3DMark03, and PCMark04 show that the Athlon 64 processor offered excellent performance for its time. Today, the Athlon 64 processor may seem outdated, but its impact on the computing industry cannot be overstated.