Merrill: Intel cuts chip prices, AMD to follow

InfoWorld ^ | November 12, 2002 7:46 am PT | Tom Krazit

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

INTEL HAS CUT the prices of its Pentium 4 in advance of the expected launch of a new 3.06GHz Pentium 4 processor Thursday, according to a research note distributed by Merrill Lynch & Co. Tuesday. Advanced Micro Devices is expected to follow suit, the note said. The approximate price of the new processor, Intel's first on the desktop to feature its hyperthreading technology, will be in about the mid-$500 range, according to Merrill. To bring slower processors in line with the new chip, the 2.8GHz Pentium 4 will fall in price from $508 to $401, and the 2.67GHz and 2.60GHz Pentium 4 processors will decline from $401 to $305. All prices are in 1,000-unit quantities. Intel will also cut prices on its budget line of Celeron desktop processors, the note said. The 2.0GHz Celeron will fall from $103 to $83, the 1.8GHz from $83 to $69, the 1.7GHz from $69 to $54, and the 1.4GHz from $74 to $55, according to Merrill. Chip manufacturers typically cut prices when a new, higher-performing chip enters the market, to align their product lines around the premium some users are willing to pay for the highest-performing processor. The prices of AMD's lower-end Athlon XP processors will also be cut sometime soon, specifically the Athlon XP 2100+, 1900+ and 1700+, according to Merrill. Neither Intel or AMD had updated price lists available on their Web sites as of Tuesday morning, and representatives for both companies were not immediately available. Tom Krazit is a Boston-based copy editor for IDG News Service, an InfoWorld affiliate.

[Lael]

My main computer at home is a Gateway PII 350, but frugality isn't an option anymore. There comes a point where sticking with a computer with major league stability problems due mainly to outdated an 200W power supply that I can't replace, is hard to argue in the face of $500-600 for a kickass new system. I'll be keeping the monitor to save money.

A word to the wise...I never said that I kept the original Gateway Tower with the original, inadequate Power supply. I didn't keep that REDICULOUS passive heat sink arrangement, either.

The source of your "instability" will be eliminated when you buy a case [ATX] with a 300 Watt Power supply. As the Motherboard is ATX form factor, it will take you about Two Hours, max to pull the hardware out and reinstall in the new tower. The case [and included 300 W Power Supply] can be had for under $100.

Far more important, however, is to remove the heat sink from the processor, and substitute a Slot One Active Cooling Fan/ Heat Sink combination. There is one that snaps right on the Slot One CPU cartridge [cost is 29 bucks]...just remember to use Heat Sink grease or [my preference] Heat Sink double sided thermal transfer adhesive tape. And, the fan has a three wire plug...there are at least three on the (Jabil Circuits made) Intel Motherboard that Gateway used for the Pentium II 350, 400, 450.

Now, let me ask you...everything was just peachy with your system for about the first year, then problems started to develop. Sound familiar???

Here is what happened...INTEL went to a different CPU heat transfer design for the 350, 400, 450 series. Those chips gave off less heat, so Intel reduced the Heat Tansfer Area from the chip to the Aluminum Backplate by more than 80%. Even though the chips give off less heat, the thermal flux density across the transfer area was increased by a factor of four!

To offset this, someone, either Intel or Gateway, decided that passive, no moving parts heat sinks would be OK if a supplemental Heat Transfer GOO was poured into the area AROUND the chip case, stabilized with a Teflon (?) strip to secure it. IT WORKED...for about a year. However, given that the Processor is mounted Vertically in the Tower, that GOO began to erode under the force of Gravity. If you use a small flashlight and Magnifying Glass, you will see this erosion.

So, I removed the passive heat sink and snapped the Fan driven Heat sink on the Slot One cartridge.

Now, I will not trade my 450 for anything. It is reliable! However, I took the opportunity to secure a P II 450 SECC2 Slot One Cartridge, Mounting Hardware and a Peltier Heat Pump/Heat Sink combo should the original fail. I got mine from Computer Geeks.

Now, you may wonder why I went to all this trouble...When you buy a new system, about the only way a manufacturer can eke out a profit these days, is to chintz in the Power Supply and Cooling. They will ALWAYS be the Achilles heal of PC's

P.S. I took a photo of the eroding GOO in the Cartridge with a SONY Mavica using the Macro feature. If you are interested, I will post it in a day or two, when I can go through my files and find it!

[Lael]

BTTT!!!