Pentium vs. Athlon 32 XP 3000+

[braxius]

PLEASE HELP!

I'm buying a computer for my brother for Christmas. All he does basically is use it for PC games. These are the 2 on sale but I don't know which is better for the application:

This one is $500
HP Pavilion A705W-B computer
HP vx74 17-inch flat screen CRT monitor
Intel Celeron D Processor 340 (2.93 GHz, 533 FrontSide bus, 256 KB L2 Cache)
40 GB Ultra DMA hard drive
256 MB DDR-SDRAM with up to 64 MB allocated to video memory
Memory expandable to 2 GB
Integrated Intel Extreme Graphics with up to 64 MB shared video memory
CD Writer and DVD combo drive (CD-RW/DVD)
Drive Speeds: 48x32x16x48
Front Panel 9-1 reader: Compact Flash I/II - SmartMedia - Memory Stick - Memory Stick Pro - MultiMediaCard - Secure Digital (SD) - IBM MicroDrive, xD
High-speed 56K flex modem
Integrated 10/100Base-T networking interface
HP keyboard, HP scroller mouse
Available Slots: 2 PCI; Available External Ports: 5 USB 2.0 - 1 serial - 1 parallel; Available Bays: one 5.25", one 3.25"
Software Included: Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2, Microsoft Works 7.0, Microsoft Money Standard 2004, Intuit Quicken New User's Edition 2004, and much more

The Athlon is $600:


eMachines T3256 Standalone PC with AMD Athlon XP 3000+ Processor (operates at 2.1GHz)
HP vx74 17-inch flat screen CRT monitor
512MB DDR RAM expandable to 2GB
80GB Hard Drive (7200 rpm)
NVIDIA GeForce4 MX Graphics (64MB Allocated Video Memory)
DVD +/- RW Multi-Format Drive
CD-RW Drive (48X Max Write)
8 -in- 1 Media Manager
5 - USB 2.0 Ports
1 - Serial Port
1 - Parallel Port
2 - PS/2 Ports
1- VGA External Connector
10/100Mbps integrated Ethernet LAN
nForce 6-channel Audio w/ Amplified Stereo Speakers
Premium+ Multi-Media Keyboard


I copy/pasted the details from walmart's site. So which is better and why? Thanks!!!!

[kaga]

the eMachines has better specs for his gaming needs

the AMD Athlon XP 3000+ Processor has more L2 cache
than the Intel Celeron D Processor

But if i have a choice i would build the computer myself since you can get a more powerful computer out of $600 but then agian you would get the 17-inch flat screen CRT monitor if you build it your self

[Scour]

Hello!

The Athlon-maschine with GF 4 MX is better for gaming, but far away from good for gaming. The HDD seems to be small, 40 or 80GB is not much

I don´t know the prices in your country, but I think for 600$ you can build a good system with single components

[tazdevl]

Need better graphics for both computers if you want him to be able to lplay some of the most recently released games. All the releases that have come out in the last 12 months would choke the graphics pipeline in both computers.

[LoneWolf]

The eMachines has far better specs on paper, but you haven't mentioned what games your brother would like to play. Either machine is definitely behind the 8 ball in the graphics department, and today's cutting-edge games will find that to be a major stumbling block.

[braxius]

Most games he plays are role playing like diablo II...stuff like that.

[SA]

I don't think anyone noticed your Intel Processor was a Celeron. That makes it no contest. Go for the AMD, it will be much better for the gaming. That processor is equal to a Pentium 3.0GHz (without hyperthreading). Definitely a few steps up. This emachine is a much better deal than the HP.