Advanced Micro Devices Inc introduced its latest computer chips and unveiled a set of new brands that it says will help consumers understand how the processors stack up against those of Intel Corp.
AMD started selling four models of the Athlon XP, previously codenamed Palomino and based on a new design. The top processor runs at 1.53GHz.
Intel and AMD have long touted a chip's speed as an easy way to judge performance. AMD became the unlikely winner for most of last year and then found itself lagging when Intel's Pentium4 debuted in November. A new puzzle emerged: Athlon outdoes the faster Pentium4 in some tests, and AMD says speed isn't everything.
"We need to provide a way for end users to understand that performance and megahertz are two different things," said Aaron Feen, a marketing manager for Advanced Micro.
AMD will start a new marketing theme, using model numbers such as the Athlon XP 1800+ to indicate the speed of the comparable Pentium4 chip, Feen said. A 1.53GHz Athlon 1800+ would perform as well as a 1.8GHz Pentiu4, he said.
"There's been this implied promise with upgrades and increased frequency and performance," Feen said. "That story has remained true until the advent of the Pentium4. It changes what the word `megahertz' means. Frequency is not necessarily the best measure of performance."
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