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This article is one of the most demanding we've tackled at SPCR in quite a while. The idea for the article germinated many months ago, but it's taken all this time to assemble the samples, necessary components and new test gear to bring it to fruition. The testing and writing took several weeks. Turion 64s work on many desktop socket 754 motherboards. What's so hard about that? It's what we thought too, but correctly documenting all the details turned out to be pretty challenging. In the end, it's still not a definitive piece on the subject, but we think it's a good introduction and overview.
WHY CHOOSE A TURION 64?
The ABCs of Desktop Turion 64
If you choose to run a Turion 64 on the desktop with a minimum of fuss, there are a few steps to follow. It's slightly more involved than using a Pentium M for a desktop system, because there are much fewer choices for the latter, which are pre-packaged specifically for Pentium M.
CONCLUSIONS :
The Pentium M and the Turion 64 are very similar in terms of power consumption. Both can easily be used in desktop systems, with a few specialized motherboards for the Pentium M and a huge range of socket 754 boards for the Turion 64. Where they differ dramatically is in price, the Turion being at least $50 or 25% less costly than the equivalent speed Pentium M, and with the top models, some $300 less (50%). That's for the processor alone, but factor in the >$200 price of Pentium M motherboards and the <$70 price of typical socket 754 boards, and you can easily get more than $400 savings by going with a top speed Turion rather than a similar clock Pentium M.
Why isn't the Turion 64 more widely recognized for desktop use? Many factors are involved, but there are three big ones.
Consumer Awareness
Lack of Technical Documentation on the Turion
Time / Availability in the Market
Many system integrators have been desktop systems based around the Pentium M for some time. Now, quiet-oriented system integrators could easily offer extremely quiet, high performance, and power-efficient Turion-based desktop systems at prices very competitive with equivalent performance Athlon 64 systems, and much cheaper than equivalent Pentium M systems. It's probably only a matter of time before some smart retailers figure it out and begins to offer Turion-based desktops.
This article is one of the most demanding we've tackled at SPCR in quite a while. The idea for the article germinated many months ago, but it's taken all this time to assemble the samples, necessary components and new test gear to bring it to fruition. The testing and writing took several weeks. Turion 64s work on many desktop socket 754 motherboards. What's so hard about that? It's what we thought too, but correctly documenting all the details turned out to be pretty challenging. In the end, it's still not a definitive piece on the subject, but we think it's a good introduction and overview.
WHY CHOOSE A TURION 64?
- 64-bit Computing
- SSE3 Support
- Power Efficiency
- Price and Availability
- Wide Compatibility with 754 Motherboards
The ABCs of Desktop Turion 64
If you choose to run a Turion 64 on the desktop with a minimum of fuss, there are a few steps to follow. It's slightly more involved than using a Pentium M for a desktop system, because there are much fewer choices for the latter, which are pre-packaged specifically for Pentium M.
- Buy a Turion 64 processor.
- Get a socket 754 board that recognizes E-stepping Athlon 64 processors.
- Get a K8 heatsink/fan that will accommodate the thinner profile of the Turion 64 die,
CONCLUSIONS :
The Pentium M and the Turion 64 are very similar in terms of power consumption. Both can easily be used in desktop systems, with a few specialized motherboards for the Pentium M and a huge range of socket 754 boards for the Turion 64. Where they differ dramatically is in price, the Turion being at least $50 or 25% less costly than the equivalent speed Pentium M, and with the top models, some $300 less (50%). That's for the processor alone, but factor in the >$200 price of Pentium M motherboards and the <$70 price of typical socket 754 boards, and you can easily get more than $400 savings by going with a top speed Turion rather than a similar clock Pentium M.
Why isn't the Turion 64 more widely recognized for desktop use? Many factors are involved, but there are three big ones.
Consumer Awareness
Lack of Technical Documentation on the Turion
Time / Availability in the Market
Many system integrators have been desktop systems based around the Pentium M for some time. Now, quiet-oriented system integrators could easily offer extremely quiet, high performance, and power-efficient Turion-based desktop systems at prices very competitive with equivalent performance Athlon 64 systems, and much cheaper than equivalent Pentium M systems. It's probably only a matter of time before some smart retailers figure it out and begins to offer Turion-based desktops.
