Sign in with
Sign up | Sign in

Best Entry-Level Gaming Processors

Best Gaming CPUs For The Money: December 2013
By

Best Gaming CPU for £55:

Athlon X4 750K

Athlon X4 750K
Codename: Trinity
Process: 32 nm
CPU Cores/Threads: 2/4
Clock Speed (Max. Turbo): 3.4 GHz (4.0 GHz)
Socket: FM2
Cache: 2 x 64 KB + 4 x 16 KB, 2 x 2 MB
Thermal Envelope:
100 W

At around £95, AMD's A10-5700 isn't a particularly compelling gaming processor. But imagine if it was £40 cheaper and included an unlocked multiplier for overclocking. That isn't a dream any longer. At last, the Athlon X4 750K is available. Selling for roughly £55, this is the cheapest enthusiast-friendly CPU you'll find. And while its lack of L3 cache hurts in games, we at least like knowing that its 100 W thermal ceiling isn't divided between x86 cores and graphics.

Read our review of the Trinity-based A series CPUs here.

Best Gaming CPU for £85:

AMD FX-6300

AMD FX-6300
Codename: Vishera
Process: 32 nm
CPU Cores/Threads: 6/6
Clock Speed (Max. Turbo): 3.4 (4.1) GHz
Socket: AM3+
Cache (L1, L2, L3)3 x 64 KB + 6 x 16 KB, 3 x 2 MB, 8 MB
Thermal Envelope:
95 W

The FX-6300 fares well in gaming tests, presumably thanks to better multi-core utilization and optimization for AMD's architecture over time. While Intel's Core i3-4130 offers more potential, you won't be able to tell the difference most of the time. On the other hand, the FX-6300 costs less, sports an unlocked clock multiplier, and features six integer cores that unquestionably benefit performance in threaded desktop applications.

Ask a Category Expert

Create a new thread in the UK Article comments forum about this subject

Example: Notebook, Android, SSD hard drive

Display all 6 comments.
This thread is closed for comments
  • 2 Hide
    MajinCry , 27 December 2013 11:49
    The 750K is a brilliant deal at that price point.

    Now, if only we could bypass Intel's compiler...
  • 1 Hide
    GalaxyMaster , 27 December 2013 21:57
    What about the AMD FX-8350? It costs only £20 more than the Intel Core i5-3350P, and performs better when using all cores, and only a little bit worse when using a single thread, and can over-clock really well. £20 for over-clocking is already a good deal, and it also has just better performance. So why isn't it on this list???
  • 0 Hide
    MajinCry , 27 December 2013 22:13
    Probably because Tom's gets a nice lil' commision for promoting Intel?

    Intel's done that sort of thing for a long time with most OEMs, such as Dell and Acer.
  • 1 Hide
    Nefos , 28 December 2013 12:59
    I am seriously missing Fx 8320 here
    £107 with Far Cry Blood Dragon, i5 performance, easy OC to 8350 level, loads of great motherboards at low price point
  • 0 Hide
    brianthesnail , 2 January 2014 15:29
    ive been using intel cpu,s since the days of the Pentium 3,however when I can get a quad core processor for under £60 I think its time to re evaluate my allegiances
    throw in a sub £50 FM2 mobo and my existing 8gb ddr3 ram and im looking at a quad core bundle for a whisper over £100..... ( currently using a Pentium G620 ) ....
    at the end of the day ( and with money tight ) it makes more sense buying the Athlon X4 750K and then overclocking it to 4.2ghz... that said with a 4ghz turbo clock I don't think I will need to ....
  • 0 Hide
    Davidest , 15 January 2014 17:39
    If you are going for a very high power CPU looking also for some overclock definitely go with the Intel Core i7-4770K. It costs around 300/320 $.
    Something a little bit cheaper but still very powerful is AMD FX-8350 Eight-Core for around 200 $.