August 8th, 2006
Intel Core 2 Duo in short supply and priced above list
There are only a few places that I have seen carry the Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4 GHz processor. The E6600 processor has a list price of $316 but is selling as high as $459 at major online retailers and even then they can’t maintain any in stock. Computer superstore Fry’s is selling the 2.13 GHz E6400 with an Intel Desktop motherboard for $499 when the CPU itself only lists for $224.
What makes these "low" to "mid-end" Core 2 Duo processors so attractive is that they are able to beat the fastest AMD FX-62 desktop processor which lists for $827 and they beat any of the older generation non-Core Intel CPUs. Furthermore, they are able to beat AMD’s fastest at stock speeds yet they are able clock well above the 3 GHz mark allowing them to widen the performance gap even further.
So is it worth the money for these new Core 2 Duo processors when they’re selling above list price? If you’re in the market for a new computer today, the processors still offer the biggest bang for the buck even when the price is being inflated by the short supply. It will take some time for the prices to come down.
George Ou is Technical Director of ZDNet. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
