LAPTOP CPU
- The arithmetic logic unit (ALU), which performs arithmetic and logical operations. Abbreviation of arithmetic logic unit, the part of a computer that performs all arithmetic computations, such as addition and multiplication, and all comparison operations. The ALU is one component of the CPU (central processing unit).
- The control unit, which extracts instructions from memory and decodes and executes them, calling on the ALU when necessary.
- Intel Pentium
- AMD Athlon
- PowerPC
CPUAbbreviation of Central Processing Unit, and pronounced as separate letters. The CPU is the brains of the computer. Sometimes referred to simply as the processor or central processor, the CPU is where most calculations take place. In terms of computing power, the CPU is the most important element of a computer system.
On large machines, CPUs require one or more printed circuit boards. On personal computers and small workstations, the CPU is housed in a single chip called a microprocessor.
Two typical components of a CPU are:
Dual-processor, Dual-core, and Multi-core: Keeping it straight Dual-processor (DP) systems are those that contains two separate physical computer processors in the same chassis. In dual-processor systems, the two processors can either be located on the same motherboard or on separate boards.
In a dual-core configuration, an integrated circuit (IC) contains two complete computer processors. Usually, the two identical processors are manufactured so they reside side-by-side on the same die, each with its own path to the system front-side bus. Multi-core is somewhat of an expansion to dual-core technology and allows for more than two separate processors.
The laptop processor is typically a lower-powered processor than those found in similar desktop machines, although some laptop makers have used desktop processors in their laptops to get a performance edge. Processors designed for mobile computing generally consume less power, and thus run cooler than desktop processors. This is important because you want your battery to last a long time and you also don’t want to burn a hole through your lap. Desktop PCs typically have massive heat-sinks and fans to cool them down, but it’s hard to fit that stuff into a tiny laptop, and fans drain laptop batteries quickly.
A useful term to understand is Thermal Design Power, or TDP. This indicates the maximum amount of wattage that the cooling solution for that processor will need to dissipate. It’s not like it will always dissipate that amount of wattage, but, generally, if you want a cooler processor, go for the lowest TDP you can get.
Performance characteristics that differentiate laptop CPUs include the amount of cores they contain, the cache memory, and bus speed–as well as the speed of the chip itself. Mainstream processors are moving toward containing dual cores. You can still get single core CPUs today, but there are performance benefits to dual-core, even if they are not huge. Cache memory is speedy local memory that allows the CPU to keep from accessing slower main memory as often, and bus speed determines how fast the processor talks to the rest of the computer. In addition to the raw processor performance characteristics, different cores have different abilities. To get a true understanding of performance you will have to look at specialized comparisons or benchmarks among different laptop models. This is often hard to do with laptops as it is not as easy to equalize other components in a test setup.
Measured CPU Speed: The speed of your CPU, as determined by the actual performance measurement of your CPU. The speed text color is black, unless your CPU has a speed rating (see 2 below). Red means your CPU is overclocked -- running faster than the manufacturer rating. Yellow means your CPU is running slightly faster that it is rated . Green means OK.
Rated CPU Speed: If present (normally present on any Pentium 4 or later CPU), the actual manufacturer rated speed of your CPU. Your CPU should be running at (or below) this speed.
Caches: A detailed description of your Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 caches as provided by your CPU. In general, the larger the cache sizes (as compared to another computer system), the faster your computer system will run.
Memory: The speed that your CPU can access the memory in your computer, in megabytes per second -- as determined by timing a large memory to memory transfer. The larger this number, the faster your computer system will run.
Examples of common CPU Types include: