How CPU manufacturers determine the clock speed of a processor?
The above analogy suggests that the clock speeds of a microprocessor may be arbitrary. That’s actually correct! The manufacturer decides on what speed to stamp on the processor based on the following factors: (1) The core structure, design, and capabilities of the processor itself. (2) The thermal stability and characteristics of the processor. (3) The market conditions. Here are more explanations that will help you understand the process. • A classic Intel Pentium processor runs between 66 and 200MHz. That’s the limitation set up by the design and the technology behind the processors. Manufacturers overcome this limitation by redesigning the processor. As a result, you have Pentium MMX, Pentium II, Pentium III, and Pentium IV. These different “levels” of the processors are incompatible among each other while the clock speeds get higher and higher. Nowadays there are even different “breeds” among the same level of processors, making them incompatible. For instance, there are three type
The above analogy suggests that the clock speeds of a microprocessor may be arbitrary. That’s actually correct! The manufacturer decides on what speed to stamp on the processor based on the following factors: (1) The core structure, design, and capabilities of the processor itself. (2) The thermal stability and characteristics of the processor. (3) The market conditions. Here are more explanations that will help you understand the process. • A classic Intel Pentium processor runs between 66 and 200MHz. That’s the limitation set up by the design and the technology behind the processors. Manufacturers overcome this limitation by redesigning the processor. As a result, you have Pentium MMX, Pentium II, Pentium III, and Pentium IV. These different “levels” of the processors are incompatible among each other while the clock speeds get higher and higher. Nowadays there are even different “breeds” among the same level of processors, making them incompatible. For instance, there are three type
