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Best Gaming CPU: Entry-level

Best Gaming CPUs For The Money: July 2012
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Best Gaming CPU for ~£50:

Pentium G630

Pentium G630
Codename: Sandy Bridge
Process: 32 nm
CPU Cores/Threads: 2
Clock Speed: 2.7 GHz
Socket: LGA 1155
L2 Cache: 2 x 256 KB
L3 Cache: 3 MB
Thermal Envelope:
65 W

It turns out that the budget-oriented Sandy Bridge-based Pentium family performs very well in games. Specifically, Intel's £48 Pentium G630 beat the FX-4100, -6100, and -8120 in our recent sub-£160 CPU gaming comparison. In fact, it finished right on par with the Phenom II X4 955.

As a result, Intel displaces AMD at the bottom rung of our recommendation list yet again this month. There's not much else to add, except that if you consider the Phenom II X4 to be a capable gaming CPU, Intel's Pentium G630 is just as viable.

Best Gaming CPU for £70:

Pentium G870

Pentium G870
Codename: Sandy Bridge
Process: 32 nm
CPU Cores/Threads: 2
Clock Speed: 3.1 GHz
Socket: LGA 1155
L2 Cache: 2 x 256 KB
L3 Cache: 3 MB
Thermal Envelope:
65 W

The extra £20 over a Pentium G630 buys you 400 MHz and DDR3-1333 memory support in the Pentium G870. Because the LGA 1155-based Core i3s and Pentiums are unfortunately crippled by locked multiplier ratios, paying a little extra for a higher clock rate is worth the added cost, we think. At 3.1 GHz, the Pentium G870 is actually a capable budget gaming processor.

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  • 1 Hide
    jay_nar2012 , 22 July 2012 08:32
    Has anyone tried gaming with an Atom or C-50?
  • 1 Hide
    bemused_fred , 22 July 2012 15:26
    Jay_Nar2012Has anyone tried gaming with an Atom or C-50?


    It's impossible. You get 3fps in minecraft.
  • 0 Hide
    iixwh3l4nxii , 19 August 2012 01:17
    I think i'll go with the Athlon x4 631 processor, it's dirt cheap and only 1 tier under all the big boy AMD's