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Quick, what pops into your head when you hear the name Advanced Micro Devices? If you're like most people, you think of low-price computers that aren't quite as fast as the more expensive Intel-based models. But AMD's new K6-III chip may force you to think again.
In our PC WorldBench tests, which measure PC performance on common desktop applications, the fastest K6-III PCs we tested performed as well as Pentium IIIs that run at higher clock speeds--unlike the first K6-III model we had tested previously. In other words, the fastest K6-III-400 performed like a Pentium III-450, and the fastest K6-III-450 performed like a Pentium III-500. Nevertheless, you should be able to find K6-III PCs selling for $300 to $600 less than comparable PIII systems.
But with multimedia and 3D graphics applications, in which speed matters most, the K6-III was a disappointment. In fact, our K6-III- 450s ran as much as 44 percent slower than the average Pentium II-450 in our graphics tests.
The lowdown: For business use, the K6-III is within striking distance of the fastest machine you can buy, but it lacks power for serious game playing or complex graphics tasks like multimedia editing.
$1599 and Up
We checked out five K6-III systems, including two 400-MHz models, the $1599 CyberMax Enthusiast KIII-400 and the $1799 Micro Express MicroFlex K6-3/400. This Micro Express was the only shipping unit we tested; all others were preproduction models.
We tested the CyberMax last month, and it failed to perform like a PIII-450, but we couldn't make generalizations about the chip based on a single PC. This month we had multiple systems to test and could draw more conclusions.
We also evaluated three 450-MHz systems this month. At the high end, the $2480 Compaq Presario 5600s-450 has a large, beautiful flat- panel display. The $1749 CyberMax Enthusiast KIII-450 was identical to the Enthusiast KIII-400 in all ways except clock speed. Finally, we upgraded the 400-MHz Micro Express to 450 MHz ourselves; Micro Express assured us that what we created was analogous to its own 450- MHz machine.
In addition to the K6-III, AMD has released a new chip optimized for notebooks, the K6-2 Mobile. We looked at the first notebook to sport this chip, Toshiba's Satellite 2545XCDT. If...