If a month was ever needed to serve as a demonstration of how fast the computer industry can change, September 2002 might serve as an excellent example. In slightly more than thirty days, we’ve seen AMD surprise launch the 2600+, Intel’s own 2.8 GHz P4 launch, AMD push back both Barton and Hammer, Intel release new thermal and power guidelines on forthcoming P4’s, and now, just as October begins, we have AMD launching the AthlonXP 2800+ as its first part running on a 333 MHz FSB. Rather than using a VIA-based KT400-board, moreover, AMD and NVIDIA teamed up and launched the 2800+ on the upcoming ASUS nForce2 platform. We’ll be examining both the CPU and the motherboard in this and upcoming reviews, but, before we dig into the new hardware, there are some issues that need to be addressed.
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