What is the difference between the AMD Athlon and Intel Pentium processors?

Answer: Intel and AMD (Advanced Micro Devices) are the two major manufacturers of processors for PCs. Intel makes the Pentium and Celeron processors; AMD makes the K6 and Athlon processors.

So what's the difference? Well, historically, Pentium processors have had the best overall performance. However, the new AMD processors are faster than their Pentium counterparts in some tests. In general, you'll pay the most for an Intel processor, which means the AMD processors typically have a better price-performance ratio.

Published: November 10, 1999 — by Per Christensson