Original Link: https://www.anandtech.com/show/1047



Introduction
For those of you not familiar with the guides here is a brief overview on how we construct them:

We select vendors to appear in our Price Guides based on two requirements: solid consumer feedback and having the lowest possible pricing. You'll notice that these vendors aren't paying us to be listed here; we do not accept requests to be listed here. We have tried to eliminate vendors with low feedback rating, but we do encourage you to do your own research before purchasing from any of these vendors.

With the new and improved Price Guides we have not only increased our standards when evaluating online vendors, but we have also partnered up with our friends at CNet to offer yet another service to you all. Using CNet's Shopper.com search engine we can provide you with an additional pool of vendors to search from that are checked up on by CNet. You can wade through those results by clicking on the CNet Pricing link in the second to last column on the right.

If there are any problems with the guide or a vendor's pricing changes dramatically then be sure to email the author listed at the top of the page and we'll take appropriate action. Remember that although some vendors may be cheaper, we only list those with generally positive feedback from a decent number of consumers. As usual, if you have any questions, comments or suggestions feel free to email us or post in the AnandTech Forums.

Also be sure to check out AnandTech's Hot Deals Forum for even more great CPUs, Video Cards and other technology buys.

Disclaimer
AnandTech does not endorse any vendor listed in the following price guide. AnandTech does not sell positions on the Price Guide. AnandTech nor any of the vendors listed in this guide guarantee the prices presented in the following pages.

This Week
As usual, if you have any reports of incorrect prices please feel free to email us with the name of the vendor and the product/price that appears incorrectly on their website. This will help us produce a more useful guide in the future.

Let us know what you think about the new table arrangements!



Intel CPU Prices
Chipset Manufacture's Info Editors Choice Current Price Old Price  (11/01/02) Change Shipping BizRate Vendor
Celeron 1.3 GHz (100Mhz) Intel.com   $49.00 $65.00 -$16.00 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Celeron 1.4 GHz (100Mhz) Intel.com   $62.00 $83.00 -$21.00 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Celeron 1.7 GHz (400MHz) Intel.com   $55.00 $71.00 -$16.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Celeron 1.8 GHz (400MHz) Intel.com   $74.00 $86.00 -$12.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Celeron 2.0 GHz (400MHz) Intel.com PICK $86.00 $113.00 -$27.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Celeron 2.2 GHz (400MHz) Intel.com   $125.00 N/A N/A FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Pentium 4 1.7 GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $121.00 $124.00 -$3.00 >$10.16 BizRate AICMicro.com
Pentium 4 1.8 GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $135.00 $130.00 $5.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Pentium 4 1.8A GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $143.00 $140.00 $3.00 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Pentium 4 2.0A GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $162.00 $160.00 $2.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Pentium 4 2.2 GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $189.00 $189.00 $0.00 >$6.18 BizRate Mwave.com
Pentium 4 2.4 GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $187.00 $196.00 -$9.00 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Pentium 4 2.4B GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com PICK $190.00 $187.00 $3.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Pentium 4 2.53B GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $232.00 $238.00 -$6.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Pentium 4 2.66B GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $300.00 $382.00 -$82.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Pentium 4 2.8B GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $380.00 $458.00 -$78.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Pentium 4 3.06 GHz (Socket 478) Intel.com   $735.00 N/A N/A $0.50 BizRate NewEgg.com

Before we get too far into the guides we would like to point out our working BizRate engine.  Each product we have listed should have a link through the BizRate search engine for current prices after our cached prices on the guides eventually change over time.  We have gone through a lot of hard work to implement this so we hope you enjoy our replacement for CNET pricings!

The last month has brought dozens of changes on the Intel CPU guide.  The most noticeable changes are in the Celeron line, where MHz for MHz, there have been several dramatic drops in price.  As we said last month, the 2.0GHz Celeron really becomes a great priced value chip when it falls below 100USD.  At 86USD you really get a lot of bang for your buck!

On the other end of the spectrum, we are starting to see where the optimal curve of P4 chips are approaching.  Priced at only 190USD, the 2.4GHz processor is this week's overall pick.  Knowing Intel, and from our previous guides, it is safe to say that four or five rings down Intel's ladder is becoming a great value marker to determine your next purchase. 



AMD CPU Prices
Chipset Manufacture's Info Editors Choice Current Price Old Price  (11/01/02) Change Shipping BizRate Vendor
Duron 1.1 GHz AMD.com   $32.00 $35.00 -$3.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Duron 1.2 GHz AMD.com   $35.00 $38.00 -$3.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Duron 1.3 GHz AMD.com   $37.00 $37.00 $0.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon MP 1800+ (1.53GHz) AMD.com   $139.00 $130.00 $9.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon MP 2000+ (1.67GHz) AMD.com   $149.00 $149.00 $0.00 >$10.16 BizRate AICMicro.com
Athlon MP 2200+ (1.73GHz) AMD.com   $203.00 $208.00 -$5.00 $1.00 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon MP 2400+ (2.0GHz) AMD.com   $237.00 N/A N/A $1.00 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon XP 1600+ (1.40GHz) AMD.com   $55.00 $52.99 $2.01 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Athlon XP 1700+ (1.47GHz) AMD.com   $54.00 $68.00 -$14.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon XP 1800+ (1.53GHz) AMD.com   $63.00 $72.00 -$9.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon XP 1900+ (1.6GHz) AMD.com   $77.00 $83.00 -$6.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon XP 2000+ (1.67GHz) AMD.com   $78.00 $94.00 -$16.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon XP 2100+ (1.73GHz) AMD.com   $89.00 $116.00 -$27.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon XP 2200+ (1.8GHz) AMD.com   $138.00 $144.00 -$6.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon XP 2400+ (2.0GHz) AMD.com   $170.00 $187.00 -$17.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon XP 2600+ (2.08GHz) AMD.com   $277.00 $314.00 -$37.00 $1.00 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Athlon XP 2700+ (2.167GHz) AMD.com   $328.00 N/A N/A FREE BizRate NewEgg.com

On the low end, AMD chips seem fairly unmoved.  True to their long range plan, the low end XP chips are replacing the Duron core, and the 333MHz ready chips are taking over the high end core.  Since the Duron is phasing out quickly, we are going to eventually pull them from the guides.

Most vendors were happy to finally start recieving Athlon MP 2400+ chips, as the MP 2200+ has been loosing a lot of ground to its Intel counterparts.  Unlike the high end XP chips, it appears as though the 2400+ is priced fairly reasonable for a server based chip.

The real action on the AMD charts appeared on the XP line.  Every chip dropped a least a few bucks and will probably continue dropping until 2800+ chips obtain about the same price the 2400+ chips had a couple months ago.  Some retailers are selling 2800+s for around 380USD, but they are usually bundle only items.  Expect them to be more readily availble next week.  This week's gem in the AMD crowd looks to be the XP 2100+.  For 89USD, this is really an awesome chip.  Keep in mind though, it only runs on the 266MHz bus.  With an nForce2 board, this chip will really scream, but until you get up over the 2600+ mark you will not see that additional increase in performance that the bus gives you.



ATI Video Cards
Video Card Manufacture's Info Editors Choice Current Price Old Price  (11/01/02) Change Shipping BizRate Vendor
ATI Radeon 9700 Pro
Crucial Radeon 9700 PRO Crucial.com   $351.89 N/A N/A FREE BizRate Crucial.com
FIC AT010 Radeon 9700 PRO FIC.com.tw PICK $305.00 N/A N/A FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Hercules Prophet 9700 PRO Hercules.com   $359.00 N/A N/A FREE BizRate ENPC.com
Sapphire Atlantis 9700 PRO SapphireTech.com   $310.00 N/A N/A FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
ATI Radeon 9700
Sapphire Atlantis 9700 SapphireTech.com   $249.00 N/A N/A FREE BizRate GameVE.com
PowerColor 9700  Power-Color.com   $262.00 N/A N/A FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
ATI Radeon 9500
ATI Radeon 9500 ATI.com   $165.00 $165.00 $0.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Sapphire Atlantis 9500 SapphireTech.com   $151.00 N/A N/A FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
ATI Radeon 9000
ATI Radeon 9000 (128MB) ATI.com   $90.00 $90.00 $0.00 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
ATI Radeon 9000 (64MB) ATI.com   $65.00 $65.00 $0.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com

Most of you will notice we have split the video card section up into two guides.  Since ATI unquestionably has the best card able to be bought right now, they should at least have their own price listings.  Admittedly, we are missing several cards, but in the next revision of the guides we should have a more extensive listing. 

This week, the good folks at FIC seem to have the best priced 9700 PRO card.  If the PRO cards are a little out of your reach, the Sapphire 9700 non-PRO cards can be found all over for about 250USD.  Remember, Sapphire is hardly a no name brand, since they actually manufacture the ATI branded cards.

Next week we should have a wider selection of cards including the 9100/8500 series and of course more 9700's.



Other Video Cards
Video Card Manufacture's Info Editors Choice Current Price Old Price  (11/01/02) Change Shipping BizRate Vendor
GeForce4 Ti 4600
Asus Geforce4 Ti4600 VIVO Asus.com   $291.00 $293.00 -$2.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
Chaintech Geforce4 Ti4600 ChainTech.com.tw   $227.00 $227.99 -$0.99 $0.50 BizRate NewEgg.com
Gainward GeForce4 Ti4600 Gainward.com   $308.00 $258.00 $50.00 $2.00 BizRate NewEgg.com
MSI GeForce4 Ti4600 MSIComputer.com   $251.00 $252.00 -$1.00 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
PNY GeForce4 Ti4600 PNY.com   $229.00 $235.00 -$6.00 $6.00 BizRate ENPC.com
GeForce4 Ti 4200
Asus V8420 Geforce4 Ti4200 Asus.com   $126.00 $160.00 -$34.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Chaintech Geforce4 Ti4200 GT20 ChainTech.com.tw   $117.00 $117.00 $0.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
Gainward GeForce4 Ti4200 Gainward.com   $120.00 $120.00 $0.00 $0.50 BizRate GoogleGear.com
MSI GeForce4 Ti4200 (128MB) MSIComputer.com   $160.75 $160.75 $0.00 FREE BizRate GoogleGear.com
PNY GeForce4 Ti4200 (64MB) PNY.com   $141.00 $141.00 $0.00 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Matrox
Matrox G450 (32MB) (Dual Head) Matrox.com   $79.00 $79.00 $0.00 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Matrox G550 (32MB) (Dual Head) Matrox.com   $91.00 $91.00 $0.00 FREE BizRate NewEgg.com
Matrox Parhelia (128MB) Matrox.com   $325.00 $325.00 $0.00 $2.00 BizRate GoogleGear.com

Finally, we have the rest of the video card bunch.  For the most part, GeForce4 cards are on the slow decline.  When we see a GeForce FX around late Q1, the GeForce4 series cards should drop like a rock.  This actually marks the 8th CPU guide in a row that we have anticipated an FX card, so with another 3 months to go the NVIDA market will feel like it is suspended animation for a while longer.

Since it is holiday season get ready for another installment of the guides later this week!  As always, feel free to email me price inconsistencies or corrections, kkubicki@anandtech.com

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