Pentimum III Upgrade?

[John R]

What speed level is necessary to show significant improvement in the upgrade
of a 550 megahertz Pentinum III
processor?

 

[JS]

The average user will not detect any speed increase that is below 20% for
the entire PC (CPU, Memory, Graphics, Etc.).
To obtain a 20% increase leaving all components the same except for
upgrading the processor you will need to increase the CPU clock speed by 40%
at a minimum.

Since PIII processors are relatively cheap (you may no longer be able to buy
what you want as some models can be hard to find) go for the fastest model
(speed) that your motherboard will support and you can afford.

Check out Power Leap at: http://www.powerleap.com/ for what your PC can be
upgraded to.

JS

 

[Phil Weldon]

'John R' wrote:
| What speed level is necessary to show significant improvement in the
upgrade
| of a 550 megahertz Pentinum III
| processor?
_____

'Significant improvement' is not really a meaningful question for so old a
CPU. Assuming you are inquiring about upgrading an existent computer
system, a better question would be what CPU upgrade for a Pentium III system
would give the best performance, and would that increase in performance be
significant for (list applications and operating system.) The Pentium III
550 MHz is a "Katami" CPU using a 100 MHz FSB. The fastest Pentium III CPU
using a 100 MHz FSB is a "Coppermine" Pentium III 1 GHz. If the motherboard
for this inquiry is capable of a 133 MHz FSB, then a "Coppermine" Pentium
III 1 GHz B would be cheaper and a bit faster.

Caveats:
The motherboard for the system must be capable of supplying the lower core
voltage the "Coppermine" uses compared to the "Katami".
If a 133 MHz FSB CPU is selected, the installed memory must be capable of
operating at the higher FSB speed.

Phil Weldon

| What speed level is necessary to show significant improvement in the
upgrade
| of a 550 megahertz Pentinum III
| processor?
|
|
|

 

[Jim Macklin]

Money would be better spent on a new computer, rather than
an upgrade that still leaves you with limited hard drives,
mobo, RAM, and no further upgrade path.


| 'John R' wrote:
|| What speed level is necessary to show significant
improvement in the
| upgrade
|| of a 550 megahertz Pentinum III
|| processor?
| _____
|
| 'Significant improvement' is not really a meaningful
question for so old a
| CPU. Assuming you are inquiring about upgrading an
existent computer
| system, a better question would be what CPU upgrade for a
Pentium III system
| would give the best performance, and would that increase
in performance be
| significant for (list applications and operating system.)
The Pentium III
| 550 MHz is a "Katami" CPU using a 100 MHz FSB. The
fastest Pentium III CPU
| using a 100 MHz FSB is a "Coppermine" Pentium III 1 GHz.
If the motherboard
| for this inquiry is capable of a 133 MHz FSB, then a
"Coppermine" Pentium
| III 1 GHz B would be cheaper and a bit faster.
|
| Caveats:
| The motherboard for the system must be capable of
supplying the lower core
| voltage the "Coppermine" uses compared to the "Katami".
| If a 133 MHz FSB CPU is selected, the installed memory
must be capable of
| operating at the higher FSB speed.
|
| Phil Weldon
|
| || What speed level is necessary to show significant
improvement in the
| upgrade
|| of a 550 megahertz Pentinum III
|| processor?
||
||
||
|
|

 

[DanS]

Money would be better spent on a new computer, rather than
an upgrade that still leaves you with limited hard drives,
mobo, RAM, and no further upgrade path.

This is true, but nearly doubling the clock speed to 1 gHz if Phils facts
are accurate, is worth under $20. A very small percentage of the cost of a
new PC.

http://www.pricewatch.com/cpu/pentium_iii_1ghz.htm

I'd have to think that the HD(s) have been upgraded from the original, but
if not, going from a 5400 RPM to 7200 RPM hard drive will have a very
perceivable improvement. So another $40-$60 if necessary, depending on the
deal-of-the-day, might not be too much to extend the life of the PC for
another year.